#hope u and ur family stay safe in general too!!

[liyuesbian]

spoilers maybe? for the dainsleif archon quest

tbh I have no idea when im getting back to genshin 😭 probably after graduation because its summer and I will not need to grind after that lol. you can spoil the quest for me if you want to talk abt it though lol because I've heard snippets from friends already SJDKFJKJ (ie that halfdan exists and that the hilichurls are khaenriahns). hardcore coping with the implications of the hilichurls getting cursed etc it's so sad 😭 btw congrats on ayaka!! also bro stay safe if u have any family in ph </3

-mystic

that's vv fair!! hmmn what should i spoil 🤔🤔 JKJK ahaha but yeah!! i felt a tear roll down when halfdan and dainsleif reunited and ... the next thing that happened with halfdan ... :'(( and i just wanna know more about what happened with khaenriah!! esp since traveller's sibling is trying super hard to revive the citizens after so many years. im trying to rmbr any other thoughts i had but that's all i can rmbr for now. but yeah the entire quest is so sad 🥹 ahh ty!! and omg >:( the entire situation in the ph got me so mad last week.. my family's safe, they're just extremely disappointed since they were leni supporters.. yep it's not looking good there but ty for your concern!! it was unexpected ahaha but massively appreciated <33 :))

#hope u and ur family stay safe in general too!! #bro i cant wait for summer #i was also trying to think of the other quests that came out but i cant rmbr anything :o #phi rambles #moots

[explorevenus]

baby steps ♡ yandere!leon kennedy x reader

nsfw (18+) - minors dni or i will call ur mom. and also the cops

word count: 5k

description: moving to raccoon city with leon, your long-term boyfriend and childhood sweetheart, doesn't go as planned. while you consider moving back home to lick your wounds, leon conspires to keep you right by his side, where you were always meant to be.

tags/warnings: yandere!leon kennedy, specifically rookie cop leon, squishy soft dom leon, manipulation and generally toxic behavior, baby trapping (via tampering w condoms), daddy kink, praise kink, pet names, no use of y/n, fingering, p in v, creampie, cockwarming, mention of vomiting

a/n: this piece was commissioned by #1 Soft Dom Rookie Leon Truther and My Feral Puppy Wife @nexysworld ,, pls pls check out her work, she's so very talented and sweet and i am lucky to call her a friend ;w; <33

hopefully if u made it this far u read the tags and know what ur in for, but out of an abundance of caution i would like to reiterate that this is a yandere!leon fic and therefore contains dark themes a la dubious/uninformed consent and unhealthy relationship dynamics. if that's a no-no for u, pls kindly move on and take care of urself !!

my masterlist ♡

my ao3 ♡

fic under the cut, thanks so much for reading and i hope u enjoy ;w;

-venus ♡

Leon had it all figured out from the day he met you, the first day of kindergarten. The two of you were going to be just like the movies, just like the storybooks– you would grow up as friends, blossom into lovers, marry young and start a family, and everything would be exactly as it should be. He would have fulfilled his purpose, and you would have fulfilled yours. All would be right in the universe.

And he wasn’t exactly far off, for a long time. You were attached at the hip through elementary school, somehow managed to stay friends through middle school and after an awkward, smitten kiss shared in the empty auditorium, you began dating in high school. It was perfect, he thought. He didn’t even have to pull that many strings.

You went to prom, got drunk for the first time, learned to drive, all in each other’s company. You had each other’s virginity. You’d seen, touched and savored every inch of each other. There was almost nothing you didn’t share.

It wasn’t too long after graduation that Leon applied to begin training at the police academy, just like he’d always dreamed of. It was a solid profession with plenty of benefits for both of you and it would give him the opportunity to help people, ticking off all the boxes of what he wanted for himself. It was perfect, it was safe.

No one was surprised when he soared through the police academy with impeccable marks. You were such a little angel when he graduated, showering him with kisses and sweets and letting him pound you into the mattress for a whole weekend to celebrate. And when his application in Raccoon City was accepted, you did exactly as he hoped you would and you followed right along with him.

Of course you would follow right along. You didn’t know what life without Leon meant. You couldn’t even conceptualize what that would feel like and you had no intention of finding out, but that was fine by him. He was happy to be your rock, your guidance, your big, strong boyfriend who would hold your hand and follow you through everything. 

With Leon, you would never be alone. You would never be far from home. After all this time, he was your home, exactly as your lives were designed.

For the first few months of living in Raccoon City, the two of you shared a cozy apartment. It was a little worse for wear, but it was cute, and it was a fun way to start your adventure into young adulthood together. He was happy to handle all of the spiders and quadruple check the locks every night if it made you feel safer, if it gave you an excuse to come crying to him like a beautiful angel whenever you were frightened.

Bumps in the night, creaks of the pipes, the skittering of the upstairs neighbor’s little dog, they all sent you folding into his arms, shaking like a leaf, crying for him to protect you. He was your knight, and God were you his perfect little princess. The apple of his eye, the one and only object of his affection. No, not his affection, his obsession.

You were all he thought about, day and night, for more than half of his 21 years of living. Everything he did, every breath he took was with you in mind. You were the only living manifestation of complete and total perfection, every inch of you crafted with care and divinity. Your lives fit together like puzzle pieces– hell, your bodies fit together like puzzle pieces. You were meant for each other.

It wasn’t long after you moved that the job you had lined up fell through, and you were left reeling. Moving away from home just to fall flat on your face was a massive blow to your self esteem, especially considering your parents practically screamed a hole through the phone at you about it. The next few days were spent sulking around the apartment, trying to pick up the pieces and choose a completely different path for yourself.

And there was Leon to hold you while you cried. To make dinner every night and dote on you endlessly, to pamper you with gifts and to insist over and over that he could make rent on his own, that he didn’t mind if you needed a little more time to wallow before finding a job… and to console you when your search for employment would prove fruitless once again.

He was there to tell you it wasn’t your fault, that the job market was just rough right now and that no matter what, he would be there to take care of you.

Weeks stretched into months and you still felt like you were spinning out, even with Leon by your side. Every single day was beginning to feel the same and you didn’t know what to do, all you knew was that you couldn’t imagine living the rest of your life like this. Something had to give and Raccoon City clearly wasn’t it.

Leon came home with a big smile on his face, just like any other day, but today was extra special. He’d finally had his one year review at the police station, and he was getting a sizable raise. He couldn’t wait to tell you he was gonna get you out of this shitty apartment and into somewhere nicer. He couldn’t wait to sneak his way down to the jeweler in search of a ring. The storybook life he had laid out for you was coming to fruition right before his eyes.

But you were quiet over dinner, and you looked exhausted. You wouldn’t even meet his eyes as you picked at your plate.

He was just about to ask you what was wrong when you finally spoke up, “I-I think I need to move back home with my parents.”

Silence. He felt like he had been shot.

“It’s just that… I know you said you’re happy to take care of bills and everything, but I just feel terrible every day being a burden and I think I need a chance to figure things out and get back up on my feet. I don’t even know what I’m doing with my life anymore.”

His expression fell and his heart ached, any and all excitement he had about his situation now gone in an instant. All the money in the world meant nothing to him if he couldn’t share it with you, and to see you so lost and scared made him feel like he fucking failed you, his poor, sweet princess who looked to him for purpose and protection and partnership. 

Leon wasn’t stupid. He knew that allowing you to move back in with your parents could potentially be a death sentence to your relationship. When people aren’t around each other anymore, it’s only natural that they drift apart, and Leon could not let that happen. It wasn’t even an option in his brain. Something had to be done and something had to be done now, before your lease was up in a few months, before push came to shove and you would finally have to make your choice.

He wasn’t even really sure where he got the idea. It wasn’t something he’d ever considered before, mostly because he didn’t think he’d ever be put in this position.

A few nights after that conversation, Leon couldn’t sleep. It was well past two in the morning and you were peacefully asleep beside him while he stared at the ceiling, entirely lost in thought. He witnessed the worst and darkest of humanity at work every single day, but nothing scared him as deeply as the idea of losing you. 

Eventually he got out of bed as carefully as he could manage, not wanting to wake you with his troubles. He only planned to get some water and maybe a minute or two of fresh air to clear his mind, but what he didn’t plan to get was some inspiration. 

You had asked him to stop at the store on his way home from work to pick up a few things you needed, and the bag was still sitting on the counter. He took it upon himself to grab a few things he needed, too, and among the items left in the bag was an unopened box of condoms. At first his eyes skimmed over it without much interest, but it wasn’t long before he froze where he stood and turned to look at the bag again.

Leon wasn’t sure what came over him. He didn’t really feel like himself, it was like he was watching his next moves from a third person perspective, hovering above, detached. For a moment he even wondered if he was sleepwalking, or if this was a dream. He stared down at the box in his hand, carefully opened it, and pierced a hole in the center of each and every one. He tucked the packets back into the box and brought it with him on his way back to the bedroom, stashing it in the usual spot in the bedside table.

On his side, of course.

He tried to go back to sleep, but he couldn’t help but just watch you. You were so pretty, so peaceful when you were dreaming, such a nice contrast to the stress and insecurity over finding your life’s purpose that plagued you in your waking hours.

But Leon already knew your life’s purpose. He reached out, gently brushing your messy hair away from your sleepy face so he could admire you more fully, and all he could think about was how much happier you’d look with a ring on your finger and a baby in your belly. Maybe an unexpected nudge in the right direction would set you back on the correct path and make you come to your senses about moving back in with your parents.

You huffed out a sleepy little breath from between your plush lips, stirring in the bed and peeking open your eyes to look at him. It was clear you weren’t fully conscious yet, but you were trying, squirming closer to him to tuck yourself into his chest.

“W’time is it?” You mumbled, rubbing your eyes.

He smiled fondly, petting your hair and pressing a kiss to the crown of your head as you cuddled up to him like a sweet little baby bear, and he tried to pretend he hadn’t accidentally made himself hard as fuck thinking about knocking you up just to get you to stay with him. Somewhere deep down, he knew it was gross, he knew it was wrong, he knew it could violate your trust in so many ways.

But Leon was nothing if not a yearner, a hopeless romantic who couldn’t bear the thought of life without you by his side. He’d done everything right by you and you were still straying away from him, and that just wouldn’t do. It’s an act of desperation, he thought to himself, justifying his actions into the ground, I just want her so badly I’m not thinking straight, all pleas for forgiveness he would store for later use.

“It’s late, baby,” He mumbled into your hair, breathing in the scent of your shampoo. “I’m sorry if I woke you up.”

You just shook your head and tightened your arms around him, clearly on the verge of dozing off again. Perhaps if the circumstances were different, he would have just let you, but he wouldn’t be awake in the first place if it weren’t for the extreme sense of urgency he felt.

His broad, warm hands engulfed you, one cradling the back of your head while the other rubbed your lower back, tapering off to paw at your hip. Your shirt– well, his shirt– had ridden up nearly to your waist, baring your cute panties, your soft belly and your plush thighs to his gaze. He swiped the pad of his thumb along your hip, imagining your bone structure spreading open to make room for his growing baby.

Leon didn’t take the time to talk himself out of it before his fingertips were sneaking down between your legs, slipping beneath your panties and finding your clit with practiced ease. The sensation was enough to jerk you awake again, a quiet mewl tumbling from your lips as you rocked into his hand, so sleepy and out of it and just so very cute.

“Leon?” Your voice was thick with sleep, but airy and light with sudden onset desire. That was all he needed to know he had you right where he wanted you.

“Shh, shh, you’re alright,” He cooed softly, following up the soothing whispers with a few gentle nibbles and bites to the shell of your ear, knowing that such attention always melted you into a puddle. “You’re alright, pretty baby, I just wanna play with you. Can daddy play with his sweet angel?”

You squirmed in his hold for a second, pondering his proposition while barely awake, but it wasn’t long before you were nodding into his shoulder and peppering his collarbone with wet kisses in return. It never took much to convince you when he spoke to you like that, so adoring and saccharine. 

“That’s my good girl,” He mused, invigorated by your consent. Almost instantaneously he became more heavy-handed with his touches, fingertips massaging firm, purposeful circles around your clit, occasionally dipping down to collect your growing arousal and bring it back with him. “You’re all mine, you know that? Never gonna let anyone else have my baby.”

Poor you. Clueless of his intentions, you interpreted that sentence in a much different way than he really meant it. But, ignorance is bliss, and what you felt right now was nothing short of blissful.

You poked your head up just to catch his lips with your own in a wanton grasp for more intimacy, a signal of your agreement, like you were giving yourself to him. He knew it was wrong that you didn’t fully realize what you were agreeing to, but again, he compartmentalized that, deciding that was a problem for his future self. What mattered right now was securing your place at his side for the rest of your lives.

He could feel the way your hips were stuttering, he could feel how short your breaths were becoming against his lips, and he knew you were getting close. Grunting into your mouth, he forced his hand further down your panties and sank two thick fingers into your hole, stretching you open for him. The intrusion was quite a bit less gentle than you were used to from him, drawing a shocked whimper from you, but you soon began to relax once more when he curled up into your sweet spot, sending you boneless. 

“D-Daddy,” You whined, nails biting into his shoulders. “Hurts… Slow, slower…”

A shiver rolled over his body, that of immediate guilt. He knew he was being a little rough with you, and he certainly didn’t want to hurt you, but…

“Fuck, I can’t help it,” He groaned, “Been thinking about this pussy all night, princess, I need you like air…”

You could hear the desperation in his tone, and even more you could feel it in the way he touched you like he was starving, like he was stranded in the desert and you were an oasis. Softened by this– and entirely hypnotized by his praise– you resigned to the feeling, allowing him to play with your body as he pleased. He was rutting into nothing without even thinking about it, his cock woefully hard and straining against the front of his grey sweatpants.

He wanted to prepare you properly, he really did, but he was so revved up and needy, he didn’t want to risk blowing his load anywhere but inside you. That wasn’t an option. Hands shaking, he pulled away from you just long enough to kick his sweatpants off and reach for one of those condoms, silently resenting the fact that he had to wear one at all, but he had an appearance to keep up. 

He tore the package open haphazardly with his teeth and rolled the condom on, shuddering deeply. His grasp was tight on your thigh as he pulled it up and over his hip, his other hand pushing your dainty purple panties aside to guide his cock into the heavenly, pillowy walls of your ethereal cunt.

Fuck, you were so fucking tight, clenching around him, whimpering and whining and writhing like a perfect little puppy in heat. Leon’s teeth sank into your shoulder as he bottomed out in you, and he almost could have sworn he felt the tip of the condom rip open even wider. The image alone had him moaning like an animal, pinning your quivering body to his own while he rolled his hips, fucking you deep and hard and slow, savoring every single stroke of your slippery walls around his aching cock. Every meeting of your hips was joined by obscene squelching with the way you were practically sucking him in.

“G-God, fuck,” Leon growled, his face contorted with pleasure. You and Leon had always had what you considered to be an active and healthy sex life, but you’d never seen him quite so beside himself with raw lust. Whatever drove him in that moment was primal, and you could feel it in his every movement, his every breath, see it in the wild look in his eyes.

His pupils were like dinner plates as he gazed down at you, stamping your forehead with kisses and feeling over every inch of your body. “Look at you, just look at you… Such a perfect little dolly for daddy to love on forever and ever, huh? Oh, my princess…”

You were lightheaded with arousal, every nerve ending in your body lighting up with white hot pleasure. You could barely even form a sentence, just nodding along as he moaned out his praise and letting him manhandle you like a ragdoll. Perhaps his words had more than a modicum of truth to them.

“F-Feels so… so… fuck, daddy, feels so good,” You babbled mindlessly, head falling back to the pillows beneath you. He was overwhelming your senses, taking over every corner of your mushy brain. The room was dark and you were still a bit delirious with sleep and to that effect, nothing existed in your world right now but daddy, daddy, daddy…

He laughed softly, pressing a kiss to the spot on your shoulder he’d so harshly bitten earlier, the pace of his thrusts not faltering for a second. “Yeah? I’ll bet it does, judging by the look on you,” He teased, nipping at your throat. “So pretty when you’re all fucked out.”

Your back was arching up off the bed, your eyes rolling back and your walls pulsing around him. Addicted to eliciting pleasured reactions from you, Leon wedged one hand between your two bodies, flattening his palm on your lower belly before pressing down.

Stars. You saw stars. A broken, high-pitched cry ripped from your throat, and you didn’t even have the capacity to hope the neighbors didn’t think you were being murdered, because you didn’t care. You could feel every rigid inch of him inside you, dragging over every nerve, his cock stuffed so deep that you swore you could feel him in your throat. Toes curling and your nails raking down his naked back, tears were beginning to prick at your eyes– you were close.

That was a good thing, though, considering he was too, and he could only hope the wet heat of your release would mask the feeling of his own. Leon sealed his lips over your own once more, swallowing your broken, needy cries as he fucked you to completion, letting his hand fall a little bit lower until his fingertips were on your clit again.

Your body twitched at the stimulation, thighs clamping down tight around his hips as you sobbed into his mouth and soaked his cock with your gushing sex. “Daddy,” You wept, clinging to him for dear life as he fucked you through your high, his own spilling out in sync. “Daddy, daddy, daddy…”

“Shh, I’ve got you, baby, I’m right here,” He cooed, taking your bottom lip playfully between his teeth before pressing a gentle kiss to the tip of your nose. “Just stay put, you’re doing so good for me, angel…”

His hips continued to piston forward as he hoped to force as much of his cum into you as he could manage, while still maintaining the believable illusion of protection. He intended to put every last one of those tampered-with condoms to use, though he wondered silently to himself if you might give up and just let him take you raw once you were to inevitably find out you’re pregnant.

You were a weeping, shivering mess in his arms, thighs clenching and twitching around him as he shushed you and babied you, petting your hair away from your tear-stained face and stamping you with delicate kisses, still stuffing his cum into you with shallow thrusts. He couldn’t wait to see you blossom right before his eyes. He couldn’t wait for you to realize your purpose was right here with him. He couldn’t wait to have you to himself for the rest of your days, his princess.

Leon remained sheathed deep within you, even as he softened, wanting to make sure you stayed plugged up well. But, he also couldn’t resist the warmth and wetness of you, how comforting it felt to be enveloped by you.

“You just stay put right there, okay, princess?” He reiterated quietly, lips brushing over your brow in a loving kiss. “Want you to keep daddy warm for the rest of the night. Can you do that for me?”

As if he even had to ask. You would have done practically anything for him when reduced to such a bleary, agreeable state of mind. He knew you all too well.

You just nodded like a bobblehead, dreamy, doe eyes staring up at him through teary lashes, hanging off his every word like gospel. He tucked you in even closer to his chest, cradling you with such adoration, his hips rocking forward every now and then just to get a reaction out of you, and to remind himself this was real.

He wasn’t at all surprised that you were able to fall asleep like that, stuffed full of cum and sated like a good little princess deserved to be. In a perfect world, you would never have to move again, just stay there in his lap forever and soak up every drop of him you could take. 

In the coming weeks, that box of condoms wouldn’t last long. The only thought on his mind day in and day out was bending you over every surface in the apartment, and you thought nothing of it. Of course you noticed his sudden, insatiable lust for you, but you assumed it was a symptom of knowing his beloved girlfriend was just a few short months away from potentially leaving. He was only grasping at every inch of you he could commit to memory, right?

In all fairness to you, you weren’t exactly that far off.

Your tired eyes pried open at the familiar feeling of Leon rutting up against you, gripping at your hips like you would disappear if he didn’t. The morning sun was just barely beginning to peek through the windows and the bed was warm, it was a lovely way to wake up, one you would never get tired of.

Or at least you never thought you would. You loved Leon— and his sexual prowess— very dearly, but you also loved being able to sleep through an entire night without interruption, and you hadn’t been getting much of that over the past several weeks.

“Mnh… Leon, babe,” You grumbled, burying your face back into your pillow. “Not today. I’m exhausted.”

He was taken aback by this at first, and then his expression fell with disappointment. Leon had gotten so used to breeding you dumb every morning before work that he wasn’t confident he could go back to functioning without it. Regardless, Leon knew that continuing his attempt to seduce you while you were this grouchy would be a death sentence, so he opted to take the path of least resistance. 

After the moment or two it took for him to process that decision, Leon’s touches quickly shifted from provocative to soothing– he was no longer grasping at your hips but wrapping you up in his arms, pressing gentle kisses to your temple and cheekbone as if to regain your good favor.

You hummed contentedly, relaxing back into his embrace. Leon always warmed up like a heater in the night, and you were more than happy to bask in it. His muscular frame was like a weighted blanket and his presence alone was usually enough to knock you out like a light, but for some reason, you were struggling to fall back asleep. Every second felt like five minutes and despite your best efforts– and your complete and utter exhaustion– sleep refused to reclaim you.

Biting back the urge to blame Leon for waking you up in the first place, you huffed out a breath and rolled over in his arms, hoping the change in position might be just what you needed.

Wrong. Very, very wrong. Something about the movement made you dizzy, nauseous, your stomach twisting into knots. You wanted to say something, but you weren’t even sure what to say. It came on so suddenly that it caught you off guard and you weren’t even fully confident you would be able to get up at first.

You whined his name quietly, nuzzling into his chest and wrenching your eyes shut in an attempt to reorient yourself, your arms closing around your middle instinctively.

“You alright? What’s the matter?” Your sweet boyfriend asked quietly, brows furrowing with concern. He could feel your body trembling against his own, your back rising and falling with short, shallow breaths.

Now it was your throat tightening, too, and the second your mouth started to flood with saliva, you knew what was about to happen. Leon didn’t stop you when you writhed out of his embrace and stumbled out of bed, depending on muscle memory alone to get yourself to the bathroom with how woozy and ill you felt.

You just barely made it to the toilet in time to vomit. The cold tile felt nice on your knees, but the impact, not as much. It wasn’t long before Leon materialized at your side with a glass of water and a cold washcloth to hold over your forehead, rubbing your back and already silently conspiring to call out of work and give his poor, sick angel the princess treatment all day.

You collapsed back into his chest with a deep shudder, reaching for the water in a desperate attempt to wash the taste of bile from your mouth. He ended up grabbing it for you, raising it to your cracked lips and helping you take slow, measured drinks.

“There you go, pup,” He hummed, rocking you gently in his lap, his poor little darling princess. “I’m sorry you’re not feeling well.”

Your eyes fluttered closed, a sense of relief washing over you at last. Maybe you just caught a bug, or ate something your body didn’t agree with, or your stress and exhaustion were finally catching up to you. Surely you would feel better within a few days.

“I’m okay,” You whispered, reaching for his hand and squeezing it affectionately. “Thanks for taking care of me.”

Leon smiled, a burst of warmth spreading through his chest. You couldn’t possibly imagine what that meant to him, considering he chose to interpret it in whatever way felt most validating. After all, no one could take care of you like Leon could, and they wouldn’t have the chance to try, anyway. Not over his dead body.

Stooping down to kiss the crown of your head, Leon’s every word was thick with syrupy sweetness, “My baby, I would be so lost if I didn’t. Taking care of you is like breathing to me.”

And he meant every part of it. He didn’t just mean it, he showed it. He showed it when he held your hair back, and he showed it when you realized you couldn’t even remember when you’d had your last period. He showed it when you sent him to the drugstore in the middle of the night for pregnancy tests, and he showed it when you broke down crying at the results, wondering how this could have happened.

His favorite part was showing it when you tearfully called your parents and told them you were staying in Raccoon City, not because you had found a job, but because you were pregnant.

“I can’t believe they’re choosing to react like this, sweetheart, I’m so sorry. They should be happy for you, and it’s awful that they’re anything but happy for you,” He said, voice low and soothing, tone purposeful. “I’ve got you, princess. I’ve got you. I’m gonna take good care of you and this baby, and we’re gonna be happy. Alright?”

Leon tipped your chin up with his knuckle, making you look at him. Your cheeks were red and your eyes were puffy with tears, droplets still clinging to your little dolly eyelashes.

It was hard not to believe him when he spoke with such conviction, when he looked at you with those rich blue eyes that bled from an endless well of love. The pad of his thumb skimmed over your pouty bottom lip as you unknowingly submitted to his grand design.

#venustext #sintext #resident evil #leon kennedy #yandere!leon kennedy #dark!leon kennedy #leon kennedy x reader #yandere!leon kennedy x reader #dark!leon kennedy x reader #leon kennedy smut #leon kennedy x you

[cistematicchaos]

hello! I have a Question about masking. when should we wear a mask? is it only when we feel sick or is it always? is it inside or outside too? if ur vaccinated but were told to only wear when sick is that bad? literally almost no on in any area around me in my state wears one except when sick and I feel unsure what to do. genuinely everywhere I go there’s close to no one. I feel afraid to wear one all the time bc judgement. but what do we need to do? I’m disabled and disability justice is important to me but since no one else wears one my friends do not think it’s needed and thinks comfort matters more bc it’s very humid here. I feel like wearing one is the right thing to do, but idk how to explain that to others or to start again and shake the fear. ppl assume ur sick when u wear bc that’s what we’re taught is the right time to. /gen

Genuinely, ty for trusting me to answer this. If you're outside or inside a public area, or inside with people who don't mask, it's best to be wearing a mask. Even when you don't feel sick! Not only can you have covid without feeling sick, but you can also carry lots of viruses without feeling sick and so can others. (Also other people don't always tell you when they're feeling sick unfortunately.)

As for the question about vaccinations, yeah, that's bad. You were lied to. People who're vaccinated can still spread covid without feeling sick and can still catch it and get long covid or die. All the vaccine does is make you a little safer if you catch it, it doesn't replace masking.

Masking is very scarce in a lot of places, so I understand that. In my area so many people don't mask and it's scary! I also understand being scared of judgement; especially from family and friends. But you're right, masking is the right thing to do and disability justice is important. And masking is especially important if you're already disabled; you're higher risk for covid fucking you up (by giving you long covid or generally worsening your disabilities/giving you more).

Since I've already explained WHEN you should be masking (if you have more questions, ask, I don't mind at all.), lemme see if I can help you out with the rest. To shake the fear, I'd suggest starting wearing your mask when you're alone to get used to wearing it more. You'll probably have to bite it and do it afraid anyway, because its a pandemic and masking is a necessity (if you can), but you can still get ready first.

To explain it to your friends, put it simply. "I discovered the vaccine doesn't replace masking, so I'm being safe." or "I realized masking keeps all of us safer during the pandemic, especially disabled people, so I'm going to keep doing it."

They may argue with you, especially since they may feel bad for not masking. You don't have to argue back with them. You can offer to send them articles about it or explain your thoughts but you don't have to justify masking!

If people think you're sick, they'll probably ask and you can explain or they'll avoid you, which may work to your advantage because social distancing from people who don't mask is good too.

If part of this doesn't make sense or you have more questions, ask me! I'd love to answer and have a lot of info on the subject if you want it. Again, thank you for trusting me to answer and I hope this helps. <3 Stay safe!

#asking chaos #i actally really appreciate this question #These are good questions!! #Like feel free to ask me shit like this #I hope this isn't too long T_T #I just really wanted to make sure I addressed all your questions #clearly and all the way #Also #I wanna say anon #I really do understand being scared of the judgement #I wasn't being sarcastic or lying #I am terrified of a lot of conflict #but wear my mask anyway #so if you want more advice on that side of it #feel free to ask bc i have a lot of experience #again hope this helps. <3 #disability #covid #covid 19 #pandemic #masking guidelines #ableism (just general) #disability justice

[satanfemme]

im really trying to find a place in my spirituality/religion/personal philosophy or whatever as an excatholique. idk. i get that it takes time and effort to find a new place in the world. but right now really i just wanna smoke a fat blunt with ol luci downstairs. any advice?

honestly? my advice is that if right now u wanna smoke a fat blunt with luci, you should literally go ahead and do that (u know, metaphorically speaking lol). try it out! see if it fits! it might, or it might not, or it might feel good now and then bad in a few weeks/months/years -- and if that happens you can just try something else out instead. nothing wrt ur personal spirituality needs to be inherent, permanent, or serious.

letting urself experiment with different beliefs/paths is hard when you're raised catholic, but ime it's the only way you're gonna find a comfortable niche! just keep it no-pressure, low-stakes. because it is. genuinely. I 100% promise. despite what the church sometimes teaches, an all loving g-d will always forgive you and welcome you back if you change your mind later or if you wanna go back at any point. and this is just my personal opinion: but most deities are like that in general too.

being a human is so hard and confusing if you get too focused on the big picture. so for now, focus on this moment. pursue however you feel in this exact moment. then stay mindful. and when the moment changes, you may notice the way you feel changes too, and then you should pursue that instead. this includes taking a break when you want to take a break, or analyzing your beliefs through a psychiatric lens if you ever notice a pattern of distress.

stay open, too. read and learn from as many varying sources as you can. different religions, sects, teachers, philosophers, etc. and be critical of those sources. ask yourself, "why do they believe this? why do they want others to believe this? who does this benefit? who might this hurt?", as well as "if I followed these teachings, who would I be? would I be the person I want to be? would I be someone else? how would I benefit? how would others benefit? could this hurt me in any way? could this hurt others in any way?" thirdly, pay attention to the other people involved in whatever you're looking at, and ask, "are these the kinds of people I want to surround myself with? are these the kinds of people I want my unaffiliated friends, s/o, or family to associate with? how do they treat people with different beliefs? how do they treat me? what do they have to gain or lose from me joining them? would they be ok if I left later on?"

and on a serious note: learn the BITE model. cults are real, and prey upon questioning people. scientology, mormonism, and jehovah's witnesses are all cults and dangerous. in the left hand path, joys of satan is a cult. the church of satan and satanic temple are not cults (afaik) but deeply flawed/harmful in fairly covert ways. individual churches/groups within an otherwise harmless religious sect can also be cults, so don't necessarily trust people based on the seemingly-safe labels they advertise. also, relatedly, please please go out of ur way to actively research antisemitism, dog whistles, and antisemitic appropriation. these prejudices are unavoidable no matter what path you look at (excluding judaism itself, I'm assuming), so you're inevitably going to encounter them again and again (and most likely already have). don't contribute to that harm.

anyways, that's a lot to process but I hope it helps. I understand how difficult this can be, myself being an excatholic occultist/devil worshiper (who still holds loose ties to catholicism anyway cause fr this shit isn't serious and it's fun to mix-n-match). and btw if ur ever really craving xtianity but don't wanna put up with the shittiness of most xtian churches, universal unitarianism is generally pretty ok and openly leftist (and not strictly xtian either, but that still kinda depends on the individual church imo).

wishing u the best of luck!

#Anonymous

[threepointseven]

Scaramouche, Venti, and Diluc with an s/o who's revealed to be a god? 👀 The reveal could be a "Oh yeah btw, I'm a god" on the s/o's part, or it could be someone else telling them about their s/o being a god. But either way, how would they react?

A god s/o!

Type- HC’s 🌷

Flowers included!🌼= venti x gn! Reader, diluc x gn! Reader , scaramouche x gn! Reader

Note🍀=i am so sorry this took a bit longer than it shouldve! Im on vacation but i have 10 requests and i got a bit scared </3

Genshin masterlist

💐Your bouquet has been delivered <3💐

Scaramouche

- he thinks your joking

“Haha very funny dont say that ever again thats disrespectful.”

- kind of pissed 🙄🙄 (but dont worry thats just cause hes super brainwashed into worshipping the tsaritsa)

- You pout and tell him you really are and he keeps dismissing it as a joke

- It riled you up and you spent the day trying to prove to him that your a god

- But how?? I mean im pretty sure all records of your existence were wiped out as you wanted to keep your role a secret

- So the next day after staying up for way too long you force him to go to a shrine, a shrine of you!

- A very forgotten shrine run by a little family that still remember the day you helped them.

- “Why did you take me here..”

- “Ah, hello young man! We’re a shrine that worships the god Y/N L/N

- Chokes on the water he was drinking

- The little family freaks the fuck out when they find out you’re the Y/N L/N theyve been worshipping for generations

- When you get back you have to explain everything to scaramouche..

- FINDS IT COOL NGL BUT HE’d NEVER TELL A SOUL😡😡 (he’s too much of a narcissist-)

- He loves it so much when you tell stories about when you were still a well known god

- He’ll have a soft smile when you babble about your adventured every night before falling asleep in his arms, its so sweet.

- ITS TOP SECRET!!! But when he’s free and your busy he goes to the shrine that worships you and kinda just rants 💔

- He knows he’s not the ideal boyfriend so a part of him hopes that maybe if he pays his respects to your god consciousness maybe you’ll forgive him </3

- But also he will force u into a duel and force u into using ur god powers👹

- You actually end up losing cause you dont want to punt that idiotic twink into space with your power💀💀💀

- Overall he thinks its so cool but he wont tell you that, and he spends an alarming amount of money buying ancient ass books that are about you when you were a god to the public

(Once during an arguement he said the tsaritsa shouldve killed you in the archon war but thats a diff convo for a diff prompt-)

Venti

- how he found out was actually so surprising, zhongli was visiting mondstat and his reason? You!

- Venti HATED the fact he was gonna visit you so he practically gatekeeped you, he slapped away zhongli’s hand when he tried to play with ur hair🙄

“Why are you even visiting them anyways you two are practically strangers to eachother! >:((“

“I assume they havent told you, Y/N is a god that assisted me during the archon war.”

“Huh”

- he needs a minute to process that 😦

- Takes a shot before coming back to you ready to bombard you with questions

“WHY DID YOU ASSIST THIS OLD DUDE INSTEAD OF ME WINDBLUME?! I FEEL BETRAYED!!”

- so dramatic about it💔

- He forces you to tell him about your journeys as a god in the past and once he tried to sneak into the church to modify a holy book about the anemo

- Archon and put in “Barbatos was inlove with the god Y/N L/n” 💀💀 cheeky mf

- He’s also unbelievably happy about it. He’s immortal and he’s so goddamn inlove with you so there were multiple nights where

- He held onto your figure for dear life since he knew one day, you were gonna pass.

- But now he knows as long as he keeps you safe, you wont be visiting celestia any time soon again!

Diluc

- the day he found out was actually terrifying and highly traumatizing for him-

- You two ran into a ruin guard during a little night stroll and you were exhausted so you easily got kicked around by the ruin, you ended up getting punched right in the face by those irritating metal gears around the ruin guard

- The sound of your grunt of pain made your boyfriend furious and he quickly dealt with the ruin guard.

- Hes so scared you died- literally leaps to you to help you and to his surprise you were busy on the ground groaning about how it hurt a bit while your body healed itself

- He never knew you knew healing magic so he was so confused-

“Y-your okay?”

“Diluc im a god of course i dont die to something like that!”

- does not take you seriously until you show him books about you

- He feels so ashamed for not believing you </3

- He actually really wants to learn more about you during the archon war and knows a lot of things about your ‘god’ role now!

- Probably more than you.

- He searches all through tevyat to find remaining items that were used to pay respects to you and worship you to put in his mansion

- YOU ARE SO EMBARRASSED BUT HE INSISTS 😡

- One time you took on your god form for a little while and he swears on his life you were the most majestic thing he’s ever seen, hangs up paintings and tapestry’s related to your history around the home, its like hes converted his religion or something🤕

- I like to think diluc likes to draw as a stress relief thing, he isnt as good as albedo but he’s definitely good!!

- So when your cuddling with him he tends to take a sketch book and sketch your face, he loves everything about you and he practically memorized what your god form looks like for the sake of drawing you

#genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #genshin impact x you #genshin imagines #genshin scaramouche x reader #scaramouche x y/n #scaramouche x reader #genshin diluc x reader #diluc x you #diluc x y/n #diluc x reader #genshin venti x reader #venti x you #venti x reader #venti x y/n #genshin x reader

[pinkslashersimp]

Can I request hc's from Michael Myers (rz), Vincent sinclair, thomas hewitt, lester and bo sinclair (separate) with a reader (male or gender neutral pls) who is taller than them? (I love your writing and I absolutely love the way you write michael 🥺🥺💗💗💗)

ofc!<3 and tysm i rlly appreciate hearing that u love my work so far💗💗💗

sorry for taking a while to get to this, i have been a super busy but i’m back now and i hope u enjoy<3:)

i do not write for lester and bo unfortunately but i can point u in the direction of my gorgeous gorgeous mutuals @imyourangell and @smexy-slashers who write for a big variety of characters if you’d like to request any from them too:)

TW:Teeny implications of murder and cannibalism, pls scroll away if this triggers or upsets u and stay safe🤍

Slashers x their gn!Reader who is taller than them🌷

RZ Michael Myers

When it comes to being taller than michael in general, he couldn’t really care less

Sure he gets so amazed at times and he’s like, “what the fuck dude, you’re taller than me???” since hes 6’9, but hes positively awestruck and won’t love you any less at all

If anything he’d consider it a big bonus because it means he won’t have to lean down to kiss you or kneel like he would for any other s/o and he loves that more than anything else >>>

he finds it very much comforting when he’s able to come home to his lover and easily pull them into a hug after a stressful night and relax into them

Michael also obsesses over the fact that since you’re much taller, you’d also be much more intimidating to victims when they run from him and wander into the old Myers house.

He finds it so hot and loves you with all his heart

Vincent Sinclair

At first he is a little taken aback, hes much more used to finding people shorter than him who stumble into Ambrose and finding someone taller than him stuns him for a moment.

He absolutely loves you, though. And doesn’t mind a taller s/o at all. He thinks it’s incredible he was able to find someone as stunning and heavenly as you and openly loves how much taller you are than him.

Of course Bo will tease him a little at first, being stuck in a traditional mindset that Vincent must be taller and whoever his s/o is must be smaller as Vincent needs to be the ‘Tall, strong man!’

Bo cuts it out after ignoring all of Vincent’s harsh glances towards him, driving Vincent into threatening to kick the shit out of him.

You can gladly use this opportunity to pat Bo on his head and make a comment that ‘you’ll find your tall strong man one day, Bo!’

pls come up behind him and rest ur head on top of his whilst hes working, he’ll absolutely melt into you >>>

Thomas Hewitt

Much like Vincent and Michael, Thomas doesn’t seem to mind much about you being taller than him at all.

If anything, for him it’s like an added bonus since his job is dangerous and he doesn’t want to worry about you being vulnerable to the ‘meats’ his family pulls into the house.

And since you’re both over 6ft (and you’re taller than him) hes able to put his worries aside for a moment and trust you’ll be safe.

Like Michael, he takes absolute pleasure in pulling you into a hug and relaxing into you once you wrap your arms around him.

Tommy also loves being the little spoon when cuddling. (just don’t mention that to Hoyt at all, or he’ll never hear the end of it.)

He just absolutely adores everything about you and you can see the love and admiration twinkle in his eyes when he gazes up at you

#slasher headcanons #slashers #yandere slashers #halloween #michael myers #rz michael myers #michael myers headcanons #michael myers x reader #vincent sinclair x reader #vincent sinclair headcanons #house of wax #vincent sinclair #thomas hewitt headcanons #thomas hewitt x reader #thomas hewitt #tcm 2006 #the texas chainsaw massacre #slasher x reader #x tall reader

[softgumi]

not sure if ur request are open, if they're not please just ignore this, but I saw u post about yandere aot girls and was wondering if you could post about yandere aot boys? specifically the warriors and any other character u want to write ofc

thanks!

A/N: I finished AOT a while ago, so I was trying to remember Bertholdt's personality LMAO it's okay he didn't have much of one anyway 

TW's: yandere content, zeke, Reiner favoritism lol, unhealthy relationships, unhealthy coping mechanisms, slight mention of Reiner's mental illness 

Zeke

✧ he's got a lot of issues, so he tries his best to seem normal around his darling. Like, for instance, he has a hard time whenever he thinks someone may be flirting with his darling, so he'll just flirt with them ten times harder. He loves them too much and it's kind of concerning. Porco finds it really creepy, but whether or not he acts on his feelings depends on his relationship with Zeke's darling. If they're friends, he's going to ask them to stay away from Zeke, but if they aren't very close, he'll just gossip about it to Pieck lol. Zeke is very aware; he just doesn't care. 

✧ that being said, he doesn't seem to get jealous a lot. Zeke is a confident person in general, and he's just a tad bit delusional. Due to this he doesn't see the point in jealousy because he fully believes that his darling loves him and only him. However, Zeke isn't completely secure. He'll get extremely uncomfortable if he knows that someone is actively trying to pursue his darling. He's quite aware that he's sort of a bad person, so if it's someone like Porco he's going to be on his guard quite a bit. Even so, Zeke doesn't let his insecurities show, he doesn't see the point in doing so. 

✧ quite honestly the most annoying yandere you could be stuck with. Zeke just loves being around his darling, so he eventually succeeds in making them dread seeing him every day. It may seem odd, considering how busy he is, but Zeke always makes time for them, no matter what. He's protective, a result of having very little family left - he knows that's his fault, but he can't help but be a little clingy anyways - and he's terrified that his darling might become a victim of Marley government officials (assuming they also live in Marley, of course). He wants them to be safe. 

Porco 

✧ he's so painfully obvious about his feelings. Anyone could tell that he was smitten, and his darling would have to be extremely dense not to notice his heart-eyes whenever he's around them. His love is intense, and he knows that all too well, but Porco admittedly tries to ignore any of his own red flags, and he hopes that his darling will do the same. Porco is sweet, though, and going off of a friends HC, kind of a himbo. Porco devotes himself fully to his darling, it's a rare kind of loyalty, and he swears that he'll never have eyes for anyone ever again. 

✧ Porco, unlike Zeke, gets jealous rather easily. It's not that he's an insecure person, because he's really not, it's just that Porco really can't stand the thought of other people clinging to his darling. Like, it's gotten to the point where the only person he trusts around his darling is Pieck and that's because she's his bestie bruh. Speaking of Pieck, she hears so much about Porco's darling that she feels like she knows them very personally, even if they've only spoke a handful of times. Porco blabs his mouth about his darling constantly and if it wasn't so annoying people would find it cute. 

✧ like, yes, he's very obsessed with them, but I feel like Porco would genuinely be a good significant other. He pays attention to his darling's habits and basically every other thing about them. Due to this, he knows how to accommodate them quite well. Porco uses this to his advantage and while he's rather stubborn, it's rare for his darling to get mad at him. He's got a pretty short temper... with other people. He's a complete angel with his darling but other people definitely don't get the same treatment. The number of times he's snapped at Reiner is foul.

Reiner 

✧ yanderes with already existing mental illnesses are kind of... difficult to deal with. It sort of depends on Reiner, though. He's genuinely very caring and sweet, but his downfalls are pretty extreme. Example, he's incredibly paranoid. Reiner has seen so much death and destruction, and he's terrified that something horrible is going to happen to his darling. Due to this, he keeps a very tight leash on his darling. He's a lot like Eren, and that feels kind of messed up to say, but they're both extremely paranoid lovers in general, though Eren is about ten times worse. 

✧ he's very sweet with his darling, though. When he's in a better, less depressed mood Reiner absolutely dotes on his darling. At the beginning of their relationship, he's rather shy, but he makes it clear that he adores them to bits. That being said, I find it hard to believe that Reiner's darling could ever hate him unless they're from Paradis and are aware of his past actions against Eldians. He's that doting and sweet, even his paranoia seems small when he shows them how sweet he is. He feels bad because he knows his feelings are unhealthy, so he tries to make up for it :(

Bertholdt 

✧ the ultimate stalker. Bert is rather shy in general, and when he starts obsessing over his darling, he finds it hard to approach them too boldly. Of course, Reiner is there to egg him on, but it freaks Bertholdt out just thinking about it. He's terrified of rejection, so he simply watches over his darling like a shadow of some kind. He gets really flustered is his darling ever comes up to him and they probably think that he's kind of weird, but cute! Bert gets so embarrassed afterwards because all the guys tease him about it. Like, anyone who knows him personally knows that he has a 'crush'. 

✧ he does small things for his darling. He's completely content watching them from afar and doesn't need to be in a romantic relationship with them in order to be happy. Because of this he's pretty much the most harmless yandere there is. Bertholdt likes giving them gifts, small but meaningful. Like, he doesn't really want them to notice him, but he wants to do something nice for them, if that makes sense. Bertholdt is sweet, but he's quiet, so his darling probably doesn't know about his little gifts, or at least they don't know that they're from Bert. He's fine with it, though.

#yandere zeke jaeger #yandere porco galliard #yandere reiner braun #yandere bertholdt hoover #yandere attack on titan #yandere #gumi writes

[plant-flwrs]

hi!! can i request a sad fred/george out past curfew after doing a prank or detention and they find (more like smell) the reader making sweets from the kitchens - he falls in love with her bc she helps him feel better and everything she does reminds him of home and his family 🥺 thank u!

sweet treats // george weasley

masterlist!

a/n: i love this request! it’s such a cute little blurb and idea and i hope i did it justice! i might even like ur request more than what i wrote 😳 n e way i hope u like it!!! thanks for requesting!!!

------

He knew the sound of his feet shuffling on the stone floor was audible, the risk of getting caught after curfew loomed over him like a rain cloud. It usually would have thrilled him, but right now he couldn’t feel anything besides paralyzing fear and worry.

It had only been a day since Ginny went missing, presumably taken into the Chamber of Secrets, and George was nauseated every minute since he found out. He hadn’t been able to sleep, and he didn’t think he would ever sleep again. His eyes felt heavy, but his mind whirled with every possibility of what was happening to Ginny. The entire castle felt different, every looming shadow felt like a threat, and every hidden passageway felt like a death trap.

He made sure to avoid all shadows, and walked cautiously in the center of the hallway. He hadn’t even bothered to take the map with him, deciding he didn’t care if Filch caught him.

He walked aimlessly. The only thing on his mind was Ginny. He felt his eyes watering, and didn’t bother to wipe the tears away.

He hadn’t known how long he had been out of bed for. He was nearing back to the common room, walking past the Great Hall. The massive doors were cracked open, and the dim light of a few candles shown through the small opening. George shuffled in, deciding to sit at the table for a minute. His eyes fell on the spot where Ginny had last sat for dinner, and his body felt weak. He sat there, where she had sat, and ran his hands over the wood. Tears fell from his eyes and onto the table. He looked up, glancing at the enchanted ceiling above him. The sky had clouded and the dazzling stars were barely noticeable.

Regaining some composure, he lifted himself from the bench. He then looked around, trying to find where the light was coming from. He noticed that the door leading down to the kitchens was ajar, light spilling from the entrance as it did the Great Hall. He walked over to the door, wiping his face of any tears. Pulling it open, he was rushed by the smell of pumpkin and baked goods. He looked over his shoulder, making sure no one saw him start down the stairs. He made one last effort to conceal the fact that he had been crying, bringing the neck of his sweatshirt up to wipe his face.

He pulled open the door to the kitchen, and the smell was stronger. It reminded him of a specific moment of his childhood. He had woken up in the middle of the night, feeling scared from a nightmare he had. He stumbled down the rickety stairs of his house, going to get a glass of water. There was candlelight illuminating the bottom of the stairs, and he followed the light. He turned the corner to see his mother pulling cookies from the oven. She turned to place them on the counter and nearly dropped them when she saw George watching her.

“Fred?” she narrowed her eyes, shaking her head, “George, what are you doing up?”

He shrugged, moving to sit at the table, “had a bad dream.”

His mother looked at him suspiciously, trying to decide if the mischievous boy was telling the truth. She saw the sweat stained brim of his shirt, his watery eyes, and his disheveled hair. She filled a glass with some milk and put a couple of cookies on a plate. She brought them over to George and sat next to him.

“It was just a dream, dear,” she said, placing a hand over his.

He drank the milk and ate a cookie, feeling very grateful for his mother’s cooking skills.

“I know, just scary, ‘s all,” George said.

“You’re alright now,” she smiled at her son, pulling his head to rest on her shoulder, “safe and sound.”

 He leaned into her touch, still chewing on some of the cookie. His eyes felt heavy and he nearly fell asleep there, safe in his mother’s embrace.

Peeking into the Hogwarts kitchen, he was disappointed when he didn’t see his mother making cookies. Instead, he saw a girl from his year leaning over an old and tattered book, twirling her wand between her fingers. Bowls and utensils littered the counter around her, some flour and batter stained her pajama shirt.

You furrowed your brow, reading the cookbook intently. You were trying to figure out how much was too much pumpkin essence, always feeling tempted to add extra. You read your messy handwriting on the side of the page, a note you had left to yourself about not adding too much of the sweet ingredient. 

George watched you brush some hair out of your face, leaving a trail of flour on your forehead. You moved back to a large bowl, opening a bottle in the shape of a pumpkin and pouring it generously into the bowl. You bit your lip in concentration, capping the bottle when you were done. He watched your eyes flicker to your wand before you picked up a wooden spoon, deciding to do it by hand. You stirred the mixture, and once you were satisfied, you ate a little bit off the spoon. Smiling to yourself, you reached for a pan across the counter. You applied some parchment paper and began to spoon on scoops of the mixture.

George was debating whether or not to go back upstairs. He would climb into the unfamiliar bed, try to fall asleep but be unable to, haunted with worry. He heard a noise from above him, and startled, opening the door to the kitchen and shutting t it behind him.

“Ah!” you yelped, dropping the wooden spoon with a clatter to the floor. 

You stared at the boy, who had his back pressed against the door. He looked sad. Big, heavy, purple bags hung from under his eyes and his skin was ghostly pale. You recognized him to be one of the Weasley twins, and you narrowed your eyes at him, trying to figure out which one he was. You bent to pick up the spoon, meeting your eyes with his once you straightened. He began moving from the door, standing awkwardly behind the counter between you two.

“Hi,” you said, wiping your hands on a rag.

“Hi,” he said, his voice cracking. 

He looked down at the floor, seeming to be embarrassed.

“What are you doing down here?” you asked him, putting the dirty spoon on the counter.

“I couldn’t sleep. I was walking around the castle when I smelled something down here,” he said, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his plaid pajama pants.

“Oh,” you replied, looking down at the mess you made in the kitchen.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“I was baking. I bake when I can’t sleep,” you smiled nervously at him, thinking he might find you odd.

He hadn’t found you odd. He smiled fondly, and nodded his head. 

“Do you mind if I stay down here?” he asked.

“Not at all,” you responded, blushing from the way he smiled at you.

You took the spoon to the sink and washed it, bringing it back to the bowl. George sat at a small wooden table a few feet away, where he could still see you. The chair was far too small for his long body, and he realized it was because it was made for house elves. He watched you begin to scoop the batter again, the pan nearly full now.

“What are you making?” he asked.

“Pumpkin cookies,” you said, not looking up from your batter.

George smiled again, a small smile he couldn’t seem to wipe off. Moments ago he had been torn with worry, but now he felt strangely at peace with you in the kitchen.

Your face was illuminated by the candles on the counter, an orange glow warping your features. He thought you were very beautiful in the candle light and he felt very comforted just by your presence.

You could feel George’s eyes on you, but you didn’t mind. You could tell something was bothering him, and you had heard about what had happened to his sister. You felt terribly bad for all the Weasleys. You had seen the redheads moping in the halls, and many people in Gryffindor ties were crying in the halls.

You slid the cookies into the large oven by your feet, and looked at the clock to mark when they would be done. You wiped your hands on the rag, and picked up your wand. You moved all the dirty bowls and kitchen equipment to the large sink, where you then casted a charm to make them wash themselves. You looked at the kitchen one last time, feeling accomplished, and moved to sit with George. 

You smiled widely at him, looking at his large legs bent awkwardly as he sat in the chair that was too small for him. You bent a little too, fitting into the chair easier than George did. You looked at him, his eyes cast down at his hands in his lap.

“Are you alright?” you asked.

His eyes met yours and his brow furrowed. His lips were pulled into a tight line. 

“Not really,” he said, his voice weak.

“I’m sorry,” you hadn’t wanted to say what you were sorry for, in case he didn’t want to hear it. 

He nodded appreciatively at you, and his eyes fell back down to his lap.

“I couldn’t sleep either,” you broke the silence, hoping that you could distract him from his thoughts.

He looked back up at you, interest piqued. He raised his eyebrows as if to ask you why, and you sighed.

“I’m feeling a bit homesick, I suppose. My mum wrote to me today and it made me miss her even more,” you said, bringing the letter from your pocket. You twisted it in your hands and placed it on the table. You had brought it down with you to read again while you ate the cookies.

“I guess I am too,” George said, looking back at the kitchen where you had been, “my mom bakes a lot. She’s a great baker.”

George seemed like he was trying not to cry, and you frowned at him. You reached forward and placed a comforting hand over his on the table.

“She sounds lovely,” you said.

He looked at your hands, swallowing back some tears. He ran his free hand through his hair, pushing it off his face. He turned his hand up so your palms were touching. He closed his hand around yours and squeezed it.

He looked up at you, meeting your concerned eyes with his sad ones. The two of you sat like that for a while, holding hands.

You eventually glanced at the clock, and felt glad to see that your cookies were just about done. 

“The cookies should be done,” you said quietly, and the both of you retracted your hands.

George’s eyes followed you as you went to get the cookies. You waved your wand, and all of the now clean and dry dishes flew back to their right places. You levitated the pan from the oven, putting it to rest on the counter. You retrieved a large plate from a cabinet, and a spatula from a drawer. You dished the cookies onto the plate and got two glasses from another cabinet. You pulled open a fridge and got a jug of milk. George smiled fondly at you, his heart spinning in his chest.

You balance the plate on the inside of your arm, your hands full with two glasses of milk. You put one glass in front of George and the plate of cookies between you two. The room filled with the wonderful smell of pumpkin, and George felt at home.

The two of you ate cookies together, and you were able to make George laugh a few times. He felt better, he wasn’t consumed with thoughts about his sister, and he felt like he could actually get some sleep.

You put the remaining cookies in a container you had conjured, closing the lid and holding the box in your hands. You and George stood at the bottom of the stairs, about to walk back up.

“I’m glad I found you here,” George said, turning to you.

“Me too, I’m glad you came.”

He smiled and sighed heavily, his eyes feeling very heavy.

“You made me feel a lot better, and the cookies were delicious.”

“Here,” you moved the container into his bigger hands, “you can have them.”

You shifted, moving your cookbook to fill the space in your hands.

“Oh no,” he said, holding them back out to you, “you made them.”

You shook your head, refusing to take them back.

“Are you sure?” you nodded your head, “Alright, thanks.”

You smiled up at him, and he smiled back down at you.

The two of you walked wordlessly upstairs, and you walked George back to his common room. You faced each other one last time, still smiling.

“Goodnight, Y/n,” he said, his voice hushed.

“Goodnight,” you replied, and started walking to your own common room.

George watched you until you turned the corner, his only thoughts about you.

The next morning, George’s eyes felt heavy and swollen from lack of sleep and crying. He had felt happy for a moment when he first woke, his mind still occupied by you, until he saw Fred’s abandoned bed next to his.

He pulled the covers off of him and changed from his pajamas. He wore his Weasley family sweater, feeling awfully homesick.

The Gryffindor common room was eerily quiet. Everyone’s mouths were in downcast frowns, moping around like scared animals.

George couldn’t stand it; he had to get some fresh air. He passed his brother on the couch, leaning into Angelina’s comforting arm. Their eyes met and neither of them smiled.

George stuffed his cold hands into the pockets of his jeans. He looked at the cloudy sky, sitting at a bench in the courtyard. He was pulled from his thoughts by the sound of a tin hitting the table in front of him. He looked towards the noise and saw you. You had put a tin full of assorted cookies on the table. You were wrapped in a scarf with your house colors on it, the tip of your nose pink.

“Hi, George,” you said, moving to sit across from him.

“Hi,” he smiled, relieved to see you again.

“I made these this morning, and I know it’s early, and you just had some yesterday,” you rambled, and George found it adorable, “but you looked like you could use some more.”

He looked at you, eyes full of adoration. He nodded happily, picking a cookie up and taking a large bite. His eyes closed in euphoria, appreciating how good of a baker you were.

“These are really good, thank you,” he said, taking another.

“No problem,” you said, pushing the tin forwards.

“Do you feel better?” he asked.

“Me? Oh, yeah,” you replied, smiling bashfully at him, happy to know he remembered what you said the night before.

“Good,” he said, smiling at the blush on your cheeks.

“What about you? You don’t have to talk about it, if you don’t want,” you told him, lowering your voice to a serious and comforting tone.

“I’m just worried, you know?” George said, his expression saddening at the thought of Ginny.

“I know, but I’m sure she’ll be fine, really,” you said, bringing your hand to cover his again. He smiled at them, turning his palm like he did last night and holding your hand.

“I hope so,” he said, squeezing your hand.

George and Fred left the infirmary, saying goodbye to their parents as the adults went to Dumbledore’s office. They began the walk to their common room, finally feeling a release from their shoulders. They had seen Ginny safe and sound, a bit torn up, but safe. Just as Fred said the password to the portrait, George realized there was only one person he wanted to see, and you weren’t in the Gryffindor common room.

He told Fred he had to go, and broke off into a run. He ran down the stairs, taking them by two, and his long legs carried him through the halls. He ran through the doors of the great hall and down the stairs to the kitchens.

He found you there, putting icing on a beautiful cake. You eyes shot up at him, and you smiled,

“George? What are you doing down here?” you asked, and he walked towards you.

“I had to see you, I had to tell you; they found Ginny,” he said, and he was breathing heavily. He couldn’t tell if it was from running or from being so close to you.

His face was inches away from yours, and his hands gripped your shoulders. 

“Oh! That’s great, I’m so glad!” you said, dropping your icing spatula and embracing George.

He wrapped his arms around you, breathing in the smell of freshly baked cake. He pulled you away from his chest, bringing his hands up to cup your cheeks. You stared at him, and he looked down at your lips. 

He closed the distance and kissed you gently. He tasted the sweet icing on your tongue, and smiled a little. Your hands were messy, but you didn’t care. You ran your hands through his hair, letting your fingernails drag through the red locks. You both pulled away, out of breath. He smiled at your swollen lips, and you smiled at the icing you had just rubbed all over his face.

You pulled out of his embrace, reaching for the rag on the counter. You brought it to his face and wiped away the sugary substance. You both stood there, smiling senselessly at each other.

“I baked a cake,” you said, “now it’s a celebration cake.”

“Can I have some?”

“Of course,” you moved away, finishing the frosting and slicing a generous piece for George.

You watched him take a bite, his mouth turning into an even wider smile.

“It’s delicious.”

#harry potter #hogwarts #weasley fic #weasley twins #george weasley x y/n #george weasley imagine #george weasley fanfiction #george weasley fic #george weasley

[thisdreamplace]

Im sad nd m feeling hopeless byond woeds. i feel directionless , alone nd..... very upset about everything in my life

Like yesterday i tried to talk to my mum abt somethng that was bothering me nd instead, she gets so much madder like she has high bp and her bp went up from yelling the crud outa me, like the only explanation other than eiyoo is she got defensive nd felt i was being ungrateful, i mean everyone else in the family stays silent and dont step forward i feel abandoned sometimes like maybe they're secretly glad shes not mad at them? Im sick of feeling this way. Idk if u know this feeling? Im not talking abt her my mum but i mean abt life in general? One real reason my mum is harsh is cuz im not doing well in life, like im not going places i want to (not literal places like metaphoricaly) bcuz of fear and social anxiety that no one ariynd me has a teeny idea of what its like. So im aware that she wants the best for me cuz i understand the everyone is u cincepf a bit. Even then its been years of same things nd issues repeating with me. For example m feeling like im gonna crack one day and when i break forever i don't even want to pick up my pieces!

Im so happy to hear ur doing wonderfully. Nd a part of me felt angry at it for a short while lol honestly like how come things are effortlesly going for u as u say, why cant i how can i experience it too, even tho my inner place is a nightmare place 😆 not a dreamplace like urs. I actually lov ur blog nd you lol dont mind me im just throwing out my thoughts, nd I fully understand how things weren't easy for u in the beginning nd everything u say on ur blog. Wish i could be brave nd not in my mind only

💀 nightmare place

i feel sad that you feel so down because life seems like its against you and you're feeling hopeless. its truly the worst to be in that sort of mindset, and i truly know you can find your way out of it. i'm glad you felt safe throwing out your thoughts here.

the truth of the matter is... the law can be difficult in the way that you really have to be willing to take responsibility for yourself. you really have to be willing to stop feeling sorry for yourself. you really have to be the one to pick yourself up and say, "enough is enough, i cant live like this anymore — i have to do better for myself." the truth is you have to want it more than you want to stay in your comfort zone. because if you dont, your comfort zone will always be waiting to invite you back in. and you will always answer the call. i would know, i lived like that most of my life. because the old way of life is comforting, its what youve always known so it makes more sense to you. you rationalize it, "this is the way things have always been." well guess what. it doesnt have to be that way. but i cant make you change your mind. only you can take that leap of faith.

you have to be willing to change before anyone and anything else does. no more waiting for life to treat you better so that you can finally feel good, you have to feel better with or without the help of the 3D.

when you say it made you angry to see how i'm doing well, i understand. i used to be similar. success stories were bittersweet. i felt happy for the person, but upset that i couldnt relate. why was everyone else able to make the law work in weeks and yet it had been months for me, and things just didnt seem to work ? why me ? that's the way i used to think.

well one day you'll look back at this type of moment and it'll all make sense. you seriously cannot keep being the same person, thinking the same thoughts and same feelings you have for years, thinking you'll get a new result. it's the opposite of what the law teaches us to be true. you've got to change and i mean really change. you must let the old story die and let the new story become your life, entirely.

you can brush off my struggle easily, but realize this. everyday i wake up and make the conscious decision to wake up and have a beautiful experience. a month ago i literally hit rock bottom; everything in the 3D i cared about so much seemed to fall apart. and i had to face that and still find the strength to say, "you know what, fuck this — i can't keep living this way." without the help of the 3D i had to pick myself up everyday, even when i felt like crumbling. i had more than my fair share of crying all day, of feeling like my heart would literally come out because of how hard i cried. considering that maybe life isnt for me after all, and perhaps i would be better off ending it there. i didnt have anything in the external world to give me hope. i had to find hope within myself. i had to look at a world that made me feel so ugly and decide its actually a beautiful world, despite the illusion. i had to take the law seriously, i had to surrender to the teachings, i had to make the art of imagining a daily practice because i decided i deserve better. and only i can give that to myself. the world cannot provide me with anything i refuse to provide myself with — this is the basics of the law. and through persistence, through not giving up on myself on the hard days, i am now singing a much more beautiful song.

when you fully accept that 1) imagining creates reality and 2) you are the only cause for all you experience... it becomes difficult to not take this more seriously. because you know how whatever you are/have within, is your experience. but you have to surrender to those truths, its up to you. i'd recommend listening to the podcast 'feeling twisty' if you're interested in what i'm saying here. mike is really the one who's explanation of the law helped me learn the importance of taking responsibility for my inner world.

im rooting for you sweet, dream place. behind the illusion of the nightmare, a dream awaits. 💖

#i am

[ssweetleaf]

i absolutely love that you call me bby! no worries, i'll let you know if something makes me uncomfortable and same goes to u!! pls tell me if anything i call you is too much :) also, i still keep my fingers crossed for u, ily<3

ok, i've read the whole ask you linked and! i think i'm gonna kind of split it to pieces and just tell what my opinion is about all the things this anon writes.

first of all and most important — shifting is 100% safe. it's not like you create a new reality when you shift. you just move your consciousness to another reality where you already exist. you don't just appear out of nowhere in your dr. your clone has already been there for a long long time. you don't transfer your body to another reality, just your consciousness.

another thing. the anon wrote "and i cant imagine how scary it will feel when you're back in ur cr and you keep wondering if this is *actually* your cr or if you're in another reality that's just like your cr yk" and i don't think it's true, because as i said sometime before, there are infinite realities. let me give you an example: i put two buttons in front of you, one of them is red and the other one is blue and i ask you to choose one. and let's say that you chose the red one. that's the moment when you shift (unconsciously, of course) because there is a reality where you chose the blue button, your consciousness just isn't there.

when it comes to using shifting as a coping mechanism, well that is obv not the healthiest option, BUT let's please remember that so many people use shifting just as an adventure, as something new to try. not everybody shifts to meet their comfort characters, that's just most of what is showed on tiktok, but that's not everything. and even if someone shifts just to meet their comfort characters, what's wrong with that?

if someone is scared that they'll get too attached to their new friends in their dr, i recommend scripting that you don't miss your friends when you're not in your dr (i did that!).

honestly, i've never heard of a really young person who would shift for such a long time that they would get married and start a family in their dr. in my opinion it's super unhealthy when people change their age in their dr. not when it's like a 19 year old who scripts they are 21 or something, but when a 15yo scripts they are like 6 or something years older, well,, of course there are some people who will do that, but we can't do anything to stop them besides educating.

please, can people stop saying that shifting will give you mental ilness? because it won't. can it however cause you to be sad, to miss your dr? of course, if you don't script that you don't get too attached to people in your dr.

educate yourself before you do something. and it doesn't apply just to shifting, but to literally every part of your life. just simply don't do things if you don't feel comfortable with doing them.

SHIT I'M SORRY IF IT TURNED OUT HARSH OF SOMETHING TO THE ANON WHO WROTE THE ASK YOU LINKED!!! that was not my intention, so i'm sorry in advance:( but sharing an opinion is always a good thing that can lead to educating ourselves, so i hope that what i wrote helped with some of the worries some people can have when they consider if they should shift! as always, everything i wrote here is purely based on my knowledge and what i learned from other shifters! stay safe and ask as many questions as you need :)

i'd love to hear more opinions on shifting in general or some specific things tho

— 🌱

thank you bby, i don’t want to write too much under this ask because it’s quite helpful for myself and others!!

but yeah, i’d really like to shift eventually, and it’s a little scary to think of instances where you rely on it so much. but i don’t think i’d ever get to that level. and all these shifting responses from everyone are v v helpful!! <3

#shifting #🌱 anon #💌 — personal: replies

[atlas-of-a-human-soul]

hi! i don’t wanna put any pressure on you or anything this is totally up to you but would you ever consider writing a boxer!grayson fanfic/concepts/blurbs? i love ur writing and hope u have the best day💖xo

The week before a match has always been the hardest. Grayson could easily lose himself in the long training sessions and dehydrating himself to keep a certain weight for the match.

Tensions are high, his temper short and conversation scarce.

When he started boxing, it was meant to be a vent to get out all his anger and ease his mind. As a temperamental man by nature, Grayson struggled to keep a clear head and the anger? It was always in him. It felt like poison eating away at him, rotting his heart.

Whether he liked it or not, Grayson alienated everyone he cared about. In time, even Ethan was gone. Grayson didn't hold it against him though, genuinely happy Ethan had moved to Australia with the love of his wife, a baby on the way. There was no bad blood between them, but the distance took a toll.

That's how he found himself alone, using a punching bag as his therapy. Knuckles are safely wrapped, his vision blurring with the sweat getting into his eyes. His hair is falling on his dampen forehead, sticking. Every punch brings more pain – the kind you can't heal with a band aid and the kind you'd never see just by looking at the handsome boxer.

The world sees him as a man-whore who spends his millions on women and cars, but he was empty – just as empty as the bottom of every bottle he got to. Drinking is bad, he knows that. Hell, he preached that every day to younger generations, but he found solace in it – solace in the ability the drinks had to knock him out at the end of the day. Dreamless, alone and never sure he'd wake up the next morning.

Biting his bottom lip, Grayson groaned as he used all his strength, slamming his fists into the bag, imagining it's him. He wished he could beat the bad out of himself, to start anew. He wished for a new life, a woman by his side – the kind of happiness his brother had managed to secure.

It's ironic – Grayson was the brother who wanted a family and kids with the house on a beach in Australia and Ethan, the brother who wasn't sure he'd ever want to get married got exactly what Grayson wanted.

With one last punch, Grayson sent the bag flying, the chain holding it breaking with the forceful impact and while he was used to finishing his sessions in the same manner, the surprised gasp he heard informed him someone else hadn't.

“Who the fuck are you?” Grayson grumbled, turning toward a girl who was trying to remain inconspicuous, keeping to the shadows.

“I ASKED YOU A QUESTION!” His roaring voice caused the girl to step back, frightened.

“I just wanted to talk.” She managed to say, breathless. She didn’t seem to falter in her wish to do so.

“This was a closed session.” Grayson lowers his voice, noticing the girl is uncomfortable, but he still couldn’t see her face. “I don’t appreciate strangers around when I train.”

"Sorry," the girl shivered as Grayson approached, his usually dark eyes filled with anger.

"Don't ever. Do that. Again," he growled; his eyes completely turning black. He wanted to make sure she deleted any footage if she took some, but when she steps closer, he’s the one losing his breath.

“Y/N?” His eyes widen, finding it hard to believe she had come to see him. After almost a year of no contact, Y/N, his best friend, had come to him.

“You don’t seem well, Gray.” Her concerned tone breaks him out of her spell and he swallows thickly.

“It’s the stress of an upcoming match. I’m fine.” He shrugs it off, dragging his forearm across his forehead to clear the sweat. He didn’t know if his heart’s speed was due to boxing or seeing Y/N, but the ache in his chest was certainly her doing.

“Is that why you can’t look me in the eye? You forget I know you.” She licks her lips, stepping closer with caution. She could admit Ethan had sent her because he was drowning in guilt of leaving, but she wanted to see him again. Even if the last time she saw him was also the time he broke her heart and told her to leave and not come back.

He often spoke in anger, things he never really meant. It was something she was used to, but she couldn’t take any longer. So, when he spoke the unforgivable words, she listened. For once in her life, Y/N listened and to be here, stand before him? That was the hardest thing she ever had to do.

“You’ve been gone for a year. You know shit about me now.” Grayson spat, turning halfway away from her to find his water bottle.

“And whose fault was that?” She purses her lips, leaning against a wall with an unreadable expression on her face. Well, he could tell she’s annoyed, but that was a constant for her in his presence. She had learned to hide her feelings away and in a way Grayson was happy she did. It was far too easy to read her in the past and he knew it would bring her a lot of grief in the past.

“You chose to leave.” Grayson counters, his frown deepening and yet her scoff made him soften.

“You told me leave and never come back! If you ever watched that big mouth of yours, you’d realize the shit you say hurts! It pushes people away and if you keep telling them to leave, they eventually do!” Y/N never intended to shout, but he always had a way of pushing her buttons.

In the past, Y/N was the calm to his storm. She could easily diffuse any situation, set him back on the right pat. She was the one girl Ethan truly believed could ever fit his brother’s temper. She was perfect for him in every way. But Grayson was determined to prove his brother otherwise and he managed to do so when she checked out of his life.

“You know what?” Y/N chuckles dryly, raising her arms in mock surrender. “I’m done. I shouldn’t have come.” Turning on her heel, she had expected to walk out, her mind at peace. She told herself she tried and that was more than enough – more than she owed him. In fact, she did it to remind herself why she was right to walk away, but the last thing she expected was for Grayson to run after her, taking her by her elbow and spinning her to face him.

“Please don’t.” He whispers, barely forming words as he chokes up at the thought of watching her walk away for the second time in his life. He made the mistake once, he didn’t plan on repeating it.

“Don’t what?” She didn’t make it easy on him, daring him to stop running and just admit he needs help.

“Don’t leave me.” Grayson manages, his grip on her elbow growing tighter, nearly painful.

“Why not?” Unblinking, she fixes her gaze on him, awaiting for any reason to stay. She had so many reasons to go, too many to count, but only one would make her stay and it was the cause of their last argument.

But he didn’t say it. He didn’t utter a single thing, simply releasing her elbow as she pulled back.

“You’ll never be able to say it, will you?” She narrows her eyes at him. Eyes that once looked at him with devotion and longing had turned hard and haunted. “You threw the words around so easily back then, but you could never tell me the same.” Shaking her head in disappointment, Y/N’s eyes fall to his wrapped hands, taking notice of the way he wrapped them.

Once upon a time, she wrapped his knuckles. She was his lucky charm. She was the girl who loved him so easily, without a doubt, but he never loved her back.

“Good luck. I truly hope you find what you’re looking for.” She wraps her arms around her, as if she’s comforting herself.

Grayson watched her leave, staring at her disappearing figure as he felt loneliness creep up on him again. He had traded everything for his career, Y/N included.

She’s right, he threw the L word around so much that it lost meaning. And perhaps he did love her, but could he give her anything more than a maybe? It didn’t feel fair to drag her back in his life only to break her heart again.

Y/N deserved better, Grayson decided. For the first time in years, he did the selfless thing – he let his good luck charm go. It didn’t feel good, but it felt right.

Drawing a deep breath, Grayson closed his eyes and hoped one day she’ll see that letting her go was his way of saying “I love you”.

#dolan twins #grayson dolan #grayson dolan x reader #grayson dolan angst #grayson dolan boxer au #grayson dolan fanfic #grayson dolan imagine

[ashesonthefloor]

baby, you’re a haunted house (ot4)

summary: Michael really wants to go to Sydney’s most famous haunted house. He may or may not get super startled by one of the actors, and may or may not hit them in the nose by accident. And, after that, he might keep coming back to to try and apologize properly. And the haunted house might just have a never-ending supply of cute guys working there. (That’s a lie. There’s only three he cares about). ao3 found here

prompt:  “I’m working as an actor in a haunted house and when I scared you, you punched me in the nose. Now I’m bleeding and someone had to get me an ice pack, and you won’t stop apologizing. You’re lucky you’re cute” (except i changed the POV because i wrote the prompt and i can do what i want thank u <3)

word count: 12,433 

content warning: blood! there is nothing too graphic, but, as depicted in the prompt, someone is accidentally hit, and there is a nosebleed. it is all handled and fine, though, and it isn’t too detailed. lots of pining :)

A/N: whew! i’ve worked on this baby for the last two months and only just finished her this week but i am PROUD! i actually really love the way it came out, and my plot! please let me know what you think, i’m a slut for feedback! this was done for my sexy, sexy halloween event that is happening right now! massive shout out to @mikeycliffords​ and @glitterblazercalum​ for beta’ing this! maddie ur comments gave me endless validation and i adore u, and iba u caught all my sexy grammatical errors and i love u for it (and ur reaction to luke’s major <3). and to both @calumcest​ and @clumsyclifford​ for having to listen to me scream and not know what i was writing. unfortunate shoutout to Mr. Gerard Way for the vibey Halloween song i named this after. baby, you’re a haunted house slaps.

Michael loved Halloween. He was pretty sure it was his absolute favourite holiday, and would say that to almost anyone who dared to ask, though most people who knew him knew not to. It was in Fall, so it was nice and chilly, and he had an excuse to bundle up in hoodies and stay there until spring. And he was an absolute slut for horror movies of any sort. He absolutely adored them, no matter how cheesy and poorly-produced. If he had any talent in it at all, he said fairly regularly to his few friends, he’d be an SFX artist. But he didn’t, and he was stuck working as a barista and getting his degree in film studies. 

So when his best friend in the whole fucking world landed a job working with Sydney’s infamous haunted house - known for being realistic, and terrifying, and all the makeup being technically perfect - and invited him to come see it, insisted he can get him in, who was he to say no? He absolutely couldn’t refuse - didn’t even want to, and he’d wanted to go for years, so this was the opportunity of a lifetime - and that was that. It was most of his favourite things all rolled up into one, with the bonus of it being sort of exclusive. Because it was so well known, they always ended up having to open a month early, and the line still wrapped halfway around the block every night. Michael was going to get a backstage pass to all sorts of shit. 

He dressed fairly warm for the occasion, even if it wasn’t quite cold enough yet to justify it, with his hoodie on, oversized so he could cover his hands with the sleeves. Sue him, okay, it was comfortable and warm and he liked tugging on the sleeves or his hoodie strings when he was anxious. Not that he ever wanted anyone to know he’s anxious. Michael worked fairly hard on keeping that part hidden away, so no one else could ever see it. It wasn’t that he was embarrassed, exactly. He just...didn’t want anyone knowing. It took level eleven Michael friendship to unlock his insecurities, thank you, and even then, there weren’t many he'd really disclose.

Sydney never got properly cold, so the hoodie was more than enough to keep him warm in the chilly end-of-September breeze. He made his way to the haunted house, queuing up in the line with the rest of the people preparing for the best fucking scares of their lives. 

The waiting process was the worst part of the whole thing. It was just him standing by himself in line, bouncing slightly on his heels every so often and worrying with his sleeves, from excitement, nerves, and maybe it was actually slightly chilly for once. He texted his friend a few times, only to get no reply. He frowned at his phone after twenty minutes of trying with no success. He was supposed to come get Michael at some point. If he was waiting to show him around at the end, wouldn’t he want to know which group he’d be in, or when he was going through the haunted house? Or at least answer him and tell him what his plan was? Apparently fucking not, though, since he made it up to the front without a single stupid text.

His jitters weren’t helped at all by that, but he eventually just jammed his phone into his hoodie pocket and hoped it didn’t fall out in the house. Michael and the people around him were finally let into the haunted house and given the long list of instructions. It was all the usual shit, that everything inside was fake, and to keep that in mind. To remember that the actors were just actors. And to go over the last few warnings - like that the actors would jump out, target people to scare them, ask questions, and generally, you know, act. Everyone agreed to the rules with varying degrees of excitement, and then they were all corralled into the waiting area. 

Michael was back to bouncing slightly in place, hoodie sleeves fully over his hands at this point. The decorations weren’t too scary yet, just meant to keep the haunted mansion theme going. The premise was something about a doctor and his torture chamber and all his patients gone wrong or something. Michael has forgotten a couple of the details, but he remembered the gist of it. He couldn’t make out anything specific, really, not through the awful dim lighting and the light fog rolling in close to the ground, thanks to the hidden fog machines, only adding to the chill in the cold building. 

One of the women in front of him was murmuring quietly to her boyfriend, gripping tightly to his hand. She didn’t seem much like she really wanted to be there. Michael hoped, for her sake, she’d remembered the safe word. Which was a nice touch, making sure everyone could yell it if needed. That rule was burned into his brain: if you yelled the safe word - mercy - any actor nearby would drop their act and escort you to the nearest exit, and you would absolutely not be allowed back in. Michael wanted to make sure he remembered it, but this was practically a once in a lifetime chance, and he really didn’t want to blow it. 

Finally - finally - they were allowed into the actual haunted house. The first room wasn’t too bad, just the doctor guy’s living room with some narration about who he’d been and a little about his ‘abominations’. Michael got enthralled in the story pretty quickly, gaze lingering on the (fake) family portraits on the (equally fake) mantle and on the walls. 

Room two brought a couple of scares, but he still wasn’t doing too badly. They were easily moved from room to room, sticking together in a clump. When the narration ended, basically, that was their cue to move on. Or for some sort or scare to jump out. 

But, of course, the greatest horror house in Sydney wouldn’t stay predictable. After room number three, the smooth transition was broken up by a long, dark corridor, with the sides pressing in on everyone as they went through. Michael curled in a little on himself, shuffling forward so close to the next person in line that he accidentally stepped on their heels. They didn’t even have time to be annoyed before they were in the next room. 

After room number four was worse. They went down an equally dark staircase, Michael’s grip on the handrail white-knuckled, pale skin almost luminous even in the pitch black. He shuffled forward once he managed his way down, unable to see anything, but didn’t bump into anyone. Which was...odd, given how tightly packed they’d all been up to this point. He took a gamble and swallowed his pride, sticking both arms out and stumbling forward, completely blind in the dark. Only then did the awful strobe light kick on above him, even fucking worse than the dark. He only got vague glimpses of where he was, and he couldn’t even see anyone around him in whatever room he was in. Fucking great, he had the best fucking luck in the entire world. Which he mumbled to himself as he continued his blind zombie-shuffle forward until his outstretched hand brushed a wall. Finally. 

He kept that palm pressed against the smooth (fake) stone, moving in one direction he chose to believe was forward. He was pretty sure it was the opposite direction from the staircase, at least. Hopefully he’d make some progress that way. This was so fucked. Where had his group gone? He was very, very sure he’d been with them. They’d filed down the staircase with him, hadn’t they? Where the fuck were they? Where the fuck was he? This certainly seemed like a fucking dungeon. 

He kept going until the shadows seemed to stay in one corner. He stretched out his unoccupied left hand, fingers brushing against another wall. He let out a frustrated groan, quiet and under his breath, even though he was pretty damn sure he was alone. He pressed his hand against it, palm against the cool stone, and he felt it open with a soft click. And he really didn’t care what was on the other side, he just wanted out of the stupid fucking strobe lights. 

And, of course the strobe lights turned off as he stepped towards the open door. His luck was so fucking perfect today, wasn’t it? 

He stepped through the hidden door (or whatever it was, Michael really didn’t care at this point), letting it slowly close behind him with the same soft click that definitely wasn’t ominous at all. This room, at least, wasn’t completely pitch black. There were lanterns hanging from the ceiling, and fake torches along one stone wall, that provided dim lighting. He skirted over to the side of the dungeon that was lit, gaze lingering on the shadowy side. His eyes still hadn’t really adjusted to the lighting, still absolutely fucked up from the stupid fucking strobe light. He would enjoy this a lot more if he knew this was intentional - if it was intentional - or if he was with his fucking group. Sue him, okay, maybe this shit was slightly better with company. 

He heard something shift from the direction of the door, gaze sliding over there. The room really wasn’t that open, and was pretty small in size. He felt something brush his left shoulder and jumped, stumbling forward toward the shadowy side of the dungeon room - backward, now, maybe, since he definitely whirled around to look at whatever the fuck had poked him, only to find nothing but the stone wall. What the fuck was this fucking place? He knew that wasn’t a bat. Maybe it was a bat? He really, really didn’t know. 

There was a weird sound from the shadowy side of the dungeon, which he was way, way closer to, now. He turned to look at it, only to flinch back when something lunged at him, snarling. Michael whirled around to look and let out an absolutely dignified shriek, reacting entirely on instinct, which was the only reason he realized, seconds too late, that that horrifying crunching noise had been his fist colliding with the thing’s nose. 

The thing, that he was now realizing, was an actor, chained to the wall with long chains. They’d made the noise earlier, scraping against the floor, as the actor had shifted. Probably. “Oh, fuck,” Michael said automatically, eyes widening. His knuckles fucking hurt, sure, but he was more focused on the poor actor. 

The makeup was, as promised, spectacular. He was a half-turned werewolf, shirtless and covered in gruesome patches of fur and deep, gory claw marks. He had some sort of fangs in, too, and weird orange contacts that definitely made him look feral. What Michael was most focused on, though, was the blood dripping from his nose that was definitely not stage makeup. 

The actor had a small frown on his face, two fingers coming up to gently touch his nose. He let out a soft hiss, frown pulling more at his lips. “Damn,” he murmured. 

“Oh, fuck,” Michael said, ever so eloquent. “Oh, fuck. Dude, I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. I don’t- I’ve never hit someone before in my life, I don’t know what the fuck-“

The actor shook his head. “It’s alright. It happens.” He gave him a small smile, one corner of his lips pulling up, before it dropped right back into a frown. Probably aggravated his injured nose. That Michael had done. Fuck. “Hazard of the job, you know? I told them not to activate the strobe lights and then put a jump scare after them. They make people jumpy since they fuck with your vision. They put people on edge. And then to have someone jump at you out of the dark….” He just looked sort of amused. Vindicated, too, maybe. “I figured it would happen at some point. I just got lucky until now, I guess.”

“Fuck, I’m so….I don’t even…..I’m so sorry,” Michael said again, brows drawing together. He really hadn’t meant to. Had he made that clear enough yet? He hadn’t meant to. His panic wasn’t helped by how fucking cute the werewolf was. 

The werewolf just ran a hand through his brown curls, pushing them back out of his eyes. “It’s alright. Really. It happens.” He eyed Michael, amusement in his eyes despite Michael’s clear panic. “I’m Ashton, by the way.”

Michael felt like he was still a few steps behind. Shouldn’t the werewolf be mad at him? Or kicking him out of the haunted house or something? “Oh. Uh. I’m Michael.” Ashton was a pretty name. And Michael was pretty sure it suited him, since it was clear Ashton was pretty attractive, even under all the makeup. And the blood. His nose was definitely bruised.

Speaking of his bloody nose, Ashton pressed two fingers right below it again, frowning as they came away covered in blood. “Well, Michael, you can definitely pack a punch.” He looked almost amused again before it gave way to concern. “Are you okay?”

Michael’s internal monologue still hadn’t shifted from ‘fuck. Fuck. fuck. Fuck. fuck. Fuck. fuck. Fuck.’ on loop in his head, so it took him a second to register the question. He still felt like he was short circuiting, adrenaline from the scare and the acute embarrassment immediately after still tingling up his spine and all the way to his shaking hands, fingers trembling a little where they were uncovered by the hoodie sleeves. “Wha- me? I’m- yeah? Fine, I- yeah, uh, think. I think, I mean. I mean I am, I’m fine. Okay. Yeah. Good.”

Ashton raised an eyebrow, stepping just a little closer. Michael was pretty sure he could hear his own heartbeat, too loud and too fast, echoing in his ears. Not loud enough to cover the unsettling scrape of metal against stone as Ashton’s chains moved with him. He focused on breathing, pretty sure he’d stopped for a second, inhaling the stale taste of the synthetic fog, permeating through the entire building, though the air lacked the telltale haze of a fog machine, and the equally stale, dank smell of the room itself. It was grounding, sort of. He was definitely not freaking out, though. Not at all. Not with Ashton right in front of him now, gaze fixed on him, Michael’s right hand still tingling, knuckles still aching. This definitely wasn’t social anxiety nightmare fuel. He was definitely perfectly fine.

Ashton reached for Michael’s hand, Michael numbly letting him take it, unable to do much more than watch. Ashton leaned forward a little, chains scraping again against the floor to make the worst sort of unholy noise, grating on Michael’s frayed nerves, thankfully on the edge of what he was paying attention to. He was too focused on how warm Ashton’s hands were, fake blood splattered over them like he was supposed to look like he’d been clawing at himself. “You’re bruised,” Ashton said, inspecting Michael’s knuckles where they’d made contact with Ashton’s nose. “Or, you will be, at least. You didn’t hit as hard as you could have, so I think you’re okay.”

With Ashton tilted forward, it was easier to see that he was definitely still bleeding - which, fucking duh, it hadn’t been that long since he’d punched him - dripping slowly but steadily onto the floor. Noticing Michael’s gaze, probably, Ashton took a few steps back out of Michael’s space, head still tilted forward a little. He lightly pinched the bridge of his nose, giving Michael what was probably supposed to be a lazy half smile. 

“Should you- do you need help?” Michael asked lamely. It was a pretty fucking stupid question, since he’d literally just punched Ashton in the nose. And he was bleeding.

“It’s not that big a deal,” Ashton said, as calm and collected as he’d been the whole time. And fantastic, at least one of them was. “I’d go tell someone, but I’m a little bit stuck.” He raised his free hand, chains rattling a little bit. “I’m actually chained to the wall. Someone comes by and lets me out between every couple groups or every couple hours so I can use the bathroom and grab a drink and all that shit. I can’t get myself out on my own.”

“Oh, fuck.” Michael frowned. “That seems like a pretty big fuckin’, like design flaw. Who the fuck came up with that?”

Ashton laughed, short and sweet before he cut himself off, probably because his nose hurt. Which sent a jolt of regret and embarrassment through Michael. “There’s a lot of stuff like that for the sake of ‘authenticity’. Don’t tell anyone I told you, they’d have my head. I don’t mind too much, though. Only lasts two months every year, and it’s fun. Well, except for the occasional scare that goes too well.” He gestured at his face to prove his point, smile tugging slightly at his lips again before it dropped.

Michael didn’t get a chance to reply before someone came in, freezing at the sight of Ashton slightly tipped forward, nose still dripping, but much slower before, and Michael standing stiff and shocked in place. “Oh, fuck,” the stranger said, echoing Michael’s sentiments. “What the fuck happened?” 

“Well, Michael here got so startled when I jumped out that he hit me.” Ashton answered for the two of them. “We’re all good, he didn’t mean to. He’s been keeping me company.” He winked at Michael, making Michael’s face heat up, especially noticeable in the gloomy chill of the fake dungeon room. 

“Fuckin’ hell, man,” the strange guy said, immediately moving forward to free Ashton from the stupid chains. “So, you mean, the same shit you kept saying was gonna happen, happened?”

Ashton let out some sort of noise that was probably meant to be a laugh. “Yeah, pretty much exactly.”

“Fuckin’ hell,” the stranger said again, succeeding in freeing Ashton. He leaned in close to look at his nose, frowning. “Well. You definitely need to be cleaned up. You’re out of commission for tonight, we’ll just leave the room empty and the supervisors can suck my dick. Come on, let’s clean you up and get you an ice pack or something, and you can sit down for a while.” He wrapped an arm around Ashton, hand splayed out in the middle of his back. They were clearly comfortable with each other, and had the easy familiarity of close friends. Or something. The stranger nodded his head at Michael. “You, uh, Michael, was it? You can come with us, we’ll get you out.” He paused. “Unless you want to finish the house..? But I’m gonna take a wild guess and say probably not, after that.”

Michael startled a little at being addressed, temporarily forgetting he had a corporal form. “Oh. Uh. No, not really. I”m- that was enough, I think.”

The stranger nodded his head. “Makes sense. You kind of got separated from your group, it looks like. Usually people are in groups of two and three. You sort of had shitty luck tonight, huh?” He said it kindly, though. Like he was sympathetic. “My name’s Calum, by the way.”

“He’s not usually the responsible one,” Ashton teased, shooting Calum an amused look, only making Calum roll his eyes.

“Yeah, yeah. Ashton. You’re always Mr. Responsible. That’s why we’re going to patch up your boo boo.” Calum patted his back consolingly, shooting Michael a grin. “So is this your first time here?”

Michael glanced up, fingers pausing mid-tug where he’d been fiddling with his hoodie sleeves. “Oh. Yeah, it is. Uh. Always wanted to come but it’s hard to get in and last year I got stuck closing most days and couldn’t make it early enough.”

Calum nodded, like it was a solemn affair, or he was thinking. Michael’s ability to figure things out - he was pretty sure it was called perception, but it just proved his point - was absolutely shot through with his adrenaline. He was still waiting for someone to get pissed at him, to kick him out and ban him for life. “It’s a fun place, yeah. I can’t remember if I actually ever went through it before getting to work here and see ‘behind the scenes,’ but we get pretty good reviews.” Calum grinned. “I’d say a bloody nose means you’re pretty fuckin’ scary, Ash.”

Ashton let out a half laugh. “Yeah, I guess so. Or people scared shitless and blind in the dark don’t like jumpscares. One of the two.”

Calum had led them through a couple dark, narrow back hallways, clearly meant for the employees, the whole time they’d been chatting. They get to the doorway of a brighter-lit room and hear a woman gasp. “Oh, Ashton! What happened to you? Oh, god, it wasn’t those dicks from last night again, was it? I swear I’ll hunt them down-”

“No, it wasn’t,” Ashton consoled, stepping into the room where the woman started fawning over him, leaning up to inspect his face and make sure he was okay. Calum, letting her take over, gently nudged Michael out of view and stepped back into shadow with him.

“Look, Ashton’s a trooper, he’s okay,” Calum murmured, nothing but soothing sincerity in his eyes and coating his voice. “I promise. You seem pretty worried but, uh...The floor managers might not be too happy, you know? We’re missing our werewolf for the rest of the night, so the room will be empty...No one else gives a shit, I promise, I just mean that if you want to come back, you might want to leave before anyone figures it out, you know? Not personal at all.” He gave him a sweet smile that probably would’ve rendered Michael incoherent and weak-kneed any other time, but with his nerves as wired and burnt-out as they were, it only tugged at his anxiety-ridden heartstrings.

“Actually,” Calum continued, tilting his head, “I can get you a ticket or something for another night if you want to do this again.” He gave him a lopsided smile. “You know, as long as you don’t hit another actor again.” Michael assumed he must’ve looked panicked, because Calum was quick to console him. “Hey, hey, I’m kidding. Sorry, too soon.”

“Holy, fuck, Ashton, is that real?” Someone else asked, entering the room behind them.

Calum looked back at Michael, expression apologetic. “I’ve gotta- I’ll have to run damage control, Alisha - the girl - is nice but he’ll need, uh, help. Uh...The exit’s right through there, down the stairs, to the left. If you can get back before we open sometime, cut the line and ask for me. Uh. Calum. That should get you in.” Michael only realized Calum had put a hand on his arm at some point when he squeezed it gently and let go.

With another hasty apology, Calum had to return to Ashton and the whole mess Michael had caused. Michael stumbled on nerve-numb feet through the dark employee back-passageways, hearing the occasional shriek from the haunted house proper. He couldn’t help but berate himself and wish he’d done the entire fucking thing differently. And where the fuck had his friend been? Maybe he wouldn’t have been so nervous to begin with if the fucker had actually texted him back at some point. 

This whole thing had been social-anxiety massive-fuckup nightmare fuel. Seriously, Michael thought as he finally managed to make his way out of the stupid house into the city, shivering in the much-cooler nighttime air, this was going to haunt him for years. Let alone punching anyone in the first place - his hand still sort of hurt, though not a proper hurt, more like the vague ache wrapped in the anxiety-spiking memory of what he’d done - but punching an absolutely gorgeous guy in the face? Fucking hell. Worst thing he could think of.

It was still fresh on his mind as he tucked himself into bed, fresh from a shower as he’d tried to scrub the stupid memory off his skin. He just hoped he managed to actually get over this and it didn’t haunt him forever. Though, he’d been pretty fucking haunted when he’d gone to grab pizza and when the guy had said “enjoy your meal,” he’d said “you too, thanks, mum.” He hadn’t even realized his mistake until he’d gotten outside with his prized pizza. In his defense, he’d been texting his mom, and gotten mixed up. There wasn’t really a defense here.

Fuck. He really hoped this didn’t haunt him.  

-----------------------------------

Well. It haunted him. That first night had really, really sucked. Like...really sucked. It had taken ages to manage to fall asleep after that, since every time he tried, he was painfully reminded of the moment he hit Ashton right in the nose, and how awful that had felt. And everything afterward had just been an anxiety-fueled mess. 

He had class the day after, too, which really fucking sucked, but it meant he didn’t have to sit and dwell on every single mistake he’d ever made in his life. The biggest one was obviously his birth, followed very closely by hitting Ashton. He decided, though, by the end of that day, that he definitely wanted to go apologize again. Just because it hadn’t felt quite like enough just saying he was sorry. He needed to actually prove it somehow. Maybe. Or he was just an idiot. Only time would really tell. 

He got a gift card for the coffee shop where he worked, because he got a discount on it, and everyone liked coffee. Did Ashton like coffee? He really hoped he did. He was still kicking himself for not getting his number so he could make sure he was okay and apologize, but, in his own defense, everything had gone upside-down topsy-turvy really, really fast. 

He got down to the haunted house, still a while before it actually opened. He went straight to the front of the line, remembering Calum’s promise to get him in. Hopefully he could use the advice to apologize properly to Ashton. The guy at the front of the line was kind of a dick towards him, but Michael managed to find a worker in one of the designated t-shirts for the house. 

“Hey, uh, is Calum or Ashton here?” Michael asked, praying he didn’t seem near as awkward as he felt. He just wanted to apologize and leave before he embarrassed himself any further, that was all. Everything was fine. It was fine. 

“Oh, yeah. Are you one of their friends or something?” The guy glanced at him before shrugging. “Calum’s working customer service and merch. Come on, I’ll show you.” 

Michael followed the guy into the house, down a hallway that wasn’t super obvious, to what was clearly right after the exit of the house. There was a booth set up, shirts dangling from the top and displayed in the back, along with magnets and other sorts of merch along the table. Calum was sitting behind it, earbuds in, focused solely on his phone. The guy Michael had been following tapped on the table to get his attention, making Calum’s eyes snap up. He grinned over at Michael, pausing his music and tugging his earbuds out. 

“I’ve got to get back to the front, but this guy was asking for you and Ashton. You know him?”

Calum’s smile didn’t dissipate. It didn’t do much to sooth the suddenly overactive butterflies in Michael’s stomach. “Yeah, I do. I’m good, you can go.” The guy nodded and left, leaving Michael alone with Calum. 

“Hey,” Calum greeted, grinning again. “I wasn’t sure you’d come back. I was hoping you would. Are you here for the house?” His smile went coy. “Or for me?” He was clearly teasing, but Michael’s face flushed. 

“Uh. I- well. Uh. I came- well, I’m here to apologize. Yeah. To, uh. To Ashton. Again. For hitting him. I mean, by accident. I didn’t mean to.” And wow, way to be smooth. Michael just didn’t know how to function around cute guys at all. Especially not when they sounded like they could possibly be flirting with him, if they were on another planet, where people actually flirted with Michael. 

Calum just gave him another sweet smile, standing and leaning against the table. Michael definitely didn’t pay attention to the way Calum’s back arched, or the way he tilted his head sometimes without meaning to, or how good his jeans looked on him. He didn’t see any of that at all because he was a good person. He just..wasn’t blind. And Calum was cute. “Ashton’s fine. I think he’s working tonight, but I can shoot him a text.” Michael didn’t even have to reply before Calum was pulling his phone out of his back pocket and sending a text, presumably to Ashton. 

“The house opens soon,” Calum continued, “but we’ll see if we can get him up here.” He smiled a little. “You know, after you hit him by accident, they tested out some fake chains. They thought it worked great - until they did a test run, and Ashton broke them when he moved forward. Guess even plastic couldn’t hold up to his upper body strength, huh?” He smiled, eyes squinting a little when Michael flushed darker. Everything was absolutely, perfectly fine. 

Calum’s phone vibrated again and he checked it. “Oh, shit. He’s a bit hung up right now. You want to stick around for a minute and see if he can swing up here? I can give you a bit of a behind-the-scenes tour.” 

Michael considered but nodded. “Yeah, uh. That would be great.” His friend - who still hadn’t fucking gotten back with him, it had been two days, asshole - was supposed to do that when he’d originally come to the house. Better late than never, at least, even if he’d never gotten to actually make it through the haunted house proper. He just had to survive spending time with a super cute guy in the stupidly narrow employee hallways. 

Calum grinned again. “Great!” He slid over the top of the table, knocking a couple magnets to the floor. He glanced at them before shrugging. “I’ll deal with that when I’m back. Come on.” He grabbed Michael’s wrist, his hold warm and gentle, and lightly tugged him towards another hallway. “So what do you want to see first? How we put everything together? How we make a couple of the rooms function? Where we keep all the fog machines?”

“Uhhh……” That was….a lot of options. Michael honestly wasn’t sure where to start. The last comment earned Calum a laugh, short and a little nervous. “Anything?”

Calum nodded sagely, like Michael had made some interesting comment that could be considered, instead of fumbling over his words. “I’ll just start with the basic tour then.”

Calum tugged him into another room, launching into an explanation of how they put it together, and how it matched up with the other rooms in the house. He talked about how they had speakers in each room, and made sure the haunted house genuinely felt like an old rundown mansion with a stone basement. The next room was every bit as interesting, if a bit colder.

“That,” Calum explained, “would be because we keep one of the fog machines in this false wall.” He knocked on it, the sound hollower than a real wall would have made. “It adds to the vibe.”

Michael just agreed that it did, in fact, add to the general vibe of the haunted house, unsure what else to say to that. 

“You know,” Calum said, eyes lighting up a little when he smiled, bright and mischievous, “I’m pretty sure they spent most of the decorating budget on the fog machines. In order to get the light fog in the dungeons, we had to keep one every couple rooms. And then the one in the front room, so people know we’re spooky.” He wiggled his fingers with his free hand, his other hand still warm on Michael’s wrist where he hadn’t let go yet.

Michael laughed, earning another triumphant smile from Calum. “That sounds right,” he said honestly. The basement - or what little he’d seen of it, at least - had definitely been neat, with the very light fog swirling around his ankles. He just hadn’t really made it that far.

And, like Calum was a mindreader, he almost immediately said “Hey, you didn’t finish the house, right? Want to get a tour of the basement? I can show you where I had to use Klorox wipes to get Ashton’s blood off the floor.” Another grin, clearly amused with himself.

“Uh...Yeah, okay, that sounds good,” Michael said, ever so eloquent. Being in the presence of a pretty guy did not help him at all, only serving to shut down any critical thinking skills he’d ever had.

“Great! This way-” Calum started to gently lead him out of the room, hand still warm on Michael’s wrist in the chill of the room, before he was interrupted by his phone buzzing. “Fuck, what now?” He pulled his phone out of his back pocket, which Michael found impressive given how stupidly tight they were. Calum let out a huff, letting go of Michael’s wrist so he could send a text back. “Fuckin’ hell. I’m gonna have to go.” He gave Michael a look that really looked like apologetic puppy dog eyes, but Calum somehow pulled it off. “We’re letting in the first group soon. I’ve gotta go back to my booth.”

“Oh, shit.” Michael was pretty sure that was the right response. He was still distracted by the smiles Calum had flashed him just moments before. Sue him, his weakness was cute guys, okay? And social interaction. Especially social interaction with aforementioned cute guys. Like Calum.

“I’m sorry. I guess Ashton will be wrapped up in that, too.” Calum frowned, thinking for a moment. “Are you free tomorrow?”

Michael flushed, a natural reply to being asked that by A Cute Guy. “Uh. Yeah. I have class in the morning, but I’m free after.”

Calum grinned again. “Great. Swing by here again? You can ask for either me or Ashton. We’ll get you taken care of, don’t worry.” He winked at Michael, smile still on his face. Michael felt himself flush deeper, praying it wasn’t too visible in the dim lighting of the haunted house.

“Yeah, uh, okay. I can...I can do that.” Maybe he was reassuring himself a little bit. But it would be fun. Calum led him back out of the room, his hand going to the small of Michael’s back, warm even through his hoodie. If Michael’s blush had faded, that brought it back full force. Calum’s hand dropped once they were back in the hallway, but his hand brushed Michael’s on every other step as he led him back to the front, to the area where Calum’s merch booth was.

“Here we are. I’ll see you tomorrow?” Calum asked, expression earnest. He squatted to pick up a couple of the magnets and buttons that he’d knocked to the floor earlier. Michael definitely didn’t glance at his butt, because he was a very nice person, and very good at resisting things. 

“Yeah, I’ll, uh, I’ll be here.” Michael was completely fucking incapable of going one sentence without stumbling over his words. It was annoying. It was like being near any attractive guy whatsoever made his brain completely short circuit and stop working. He was pretty sure he just suffered from Dumb Bitch-itis or whatever. It was fine.

After a quick goodbye, Michael made his way to the exit and started the walk back home again. He couldn’t say that excursion was really a failure but he still hadn’t done what he’d meant to do. How many cute guys could work there, anyway? That had to be it. So hopefully he’d function properly next time he had to go, even if Calum and Ashton both completely shut his brain down. The gift card was still in his pocket, even as he reluctantly shucked his outside-hoodie to switch to his sleeping-hoodie. At least this time he didn’t have too much to haunt him before he fell asleep.

Except punching Ashton, his brain helpfully supplied. And with that, his hopes for some peaceful sleep went out the window, just like his critical thinking skills had earlier when he’d had to talk to Calum.

-----------------------------------

Michael prayed that this was the last time he’d have to go to the house. He didn’t dislike it, honestly, it was interesting and incredibly well put together. But he really just wanted to apologize to Ashton and have the whole thing be done with. Or, half of him did, at least. He hated when things got drawn out like this, and something hung over his head. He didn’t like feeling like he owed any debts at all. The other half of him, though, kind of didn’t want it to be over. Because then he wouldn’t get to see Calum or Ashton again. And alright, maybe he was a bit of an emotional masochist knowing that they wouldn’t like him but it was...nice, kind of, hanging out with people. And he wasn’t going to complain about getting to hang out with cute guys. Like...ever.

The thing was, though, it wasn’t like he could really be friends with them. He’d fucking punched Ashton right in the face for fuck’s sake. The friendship ship had long since sailed, and he’d lost any chance of talking to him like a functional person as soon as he’d panicked and hit him. Which sort of destroyed any chances he had in befriending Calum. And maybe he was a little bit lonely, and tired of spending all his free time by himself. The cute guys at the haunted house were a no-go, though, so he wanted to be done with them as soon as he could be.

Michael tugged his hoodie back on, and made his way back out into the outside world, where people weren’t so kind, and there were cute boys to accidentally hit and regret your entire life over. He didn’t want to think about having to talk to Ashton again, or Calum, doing his best to save all of his brain power for actually having to socialize, rather than wasting it on indulging his anxiety now.

He cut through the line again, though it was a bit earlier this time, so it wasn’t as long as it had been, and made his way to the front of the house. One of the workers, in the same haunted house shirts he’d see the others in the days before, stopped him.

“I’m here for Ashton?” Michael said, still not entirely sure of himself, like this wasn’t the second time he’d come back to the house and had to ask for them. “Or Calum.”

The girl glanced Michael up and down quickly, seeming to assess whether or not he was telling the truth. And really, why the fuck would he bother lying? He wasn’t even really trying to get into the house, but apologize fully to Ashton so he could hopefully stop being haunted by the memory of his major fuck-up.

“Alright, come on,” she said, turning on her heel and leading him inside. He followed her back through the room Calum had been stationed in the day before, the merch booth left empty, now, no cute guys with equally cute smiles there to drag him through the maze of the house.

The girl led her down a couple hallways Michael definitely didn’t remember, but he really hadn’t been paying as much attention to the hallways of all things the last time he’d been there. But he was pretty sure he didn’t remember any of this. Which was only reaffirmed when she stopped in a doorframe. “Luke,” she called in, hand on the doorframe. “This guy’s asking for Calum and Ashton. I’m busy downstairs. Can you try and track them down for him?” 

Michael could see over her shoulder, but couldn’t see who she was talking to. Luke gave her some form of affirmative, he guessed, because then she was turning back to look at him. “Right. You stay here with Luke. He should be able to find Calum and Ashton. You can wait with him. Good luck.” She turned and headed off back down a couple narrow hallways, leaving Michael more confused than he had been before she’d tried to help.

“Come in, I don’t bite,” came a guy’s voice from the other side of the room. Michael reluctantly shuffled in, already tugging his hoodie sleeves down over his hands. How many times was he going to be shuffled from person to person before he managed to actually give Ashton his stupid gift card and go back to his life of reclusivity, hidden away in his single dorm room. Then he’d finally get to forget how massively he’d fucked up, and not have to think about all the stupidly cute boys that worked at the stupid haunted house.

The room had several chairs set up, with a couple of tables cluttered with a bunch of weird bottles, makeup palettes, and gallons of stage blood. It was empty, except for a girl sitting in one of the chairs, and a guy working on her makeup. He was tall, with ridiculously long legs, and his blond curls pulled back into a small bun, messy, with flyaways wisping around his temples and a couple strands of hair in his eyes when he flashed Michael a quick smile. “Alright,” the guy said, pulling back to inspect his work. “You’re good to go. But maybe try not to fuck up your chest wound next time? It’s not so easy to fix.” She murmured some sort of agreement - and what sounded like an apology - before heading back out, probably to wherever she was supposed to be stationed.

The guy turned to Michael and flashed him a smile, tucking his brush behind his ear and wiping his hands on his thighs before offering one to Michael. “I’m Luke. But, uh, I think you already knew that.” His smile went a little sheepish. Michael just shook his hand, internally cursing himself for having cute boys as a major weakness. Because Luke was definitely cute.

“I’m Michael,” he said, because he was pretty sure he hadn’t yet, and it seemed like the proper time for an introduction. His brain might short circuit a little bit around cute boys, but he didn’t completely forget everything. Usually. Not yet, at least. He was just hoping to keep at least a fraction of his critical thinking skills. So he didn’t end up hitting him in the face, his brain supplied helpfully, even though that had only ever been the one time, and under very different circumstances. It didn’t make him feel much better.

Luke broke into a smile almost immediately, letting out a laugh - more of a giggle, really - that made his nose crinkle. “You’re the guy that punched Ashton,” he said, eyes crinkling a little with amusement. “Holy shit. You’re a legend.”

Michael flushed, feeling his whole face heat up, even though the room was just as chilly as the rest of the haunted house. “Uh. Maybe just a little. The one time.” He scuffed the toe of his sneaker against the ground, suddenly a little nervous. Or...more nervous. Luke was just as cute as the others had been, stray glitter stuck to his hands (and Michael’s palm, now, after he’d shook his hand), and his hair in that stupidly endearing bun. And apparently he knew about the biggest fuck up in Michael’s entire life, which really wasn’t all that good for his already not so fantastic self esteem. 

Luke nodded, still looking only a couple seconds from laughing. “The one time. Yeah. Ashton thought it was hilarious. It worked out, though, he got the rest of the day off, and convinced them to fix his position so it hopefully wouldn’t happen again. Well, I mean, they mostly agreed that he could keep his phone on him as long as it was silent so he could call Calum or something to come get him if something happened. But he counted it as a win.”

 Luke leaned against the table, hip causing a couple bottles to fall over. Luke flushed, pink covering his pale skin, as he rushed to sort everything out, right all of the bottles. He knocked one of them off the table, squatting down to grab it and smacking his head against the edge of the table on his way back up. It knocked the brush from behind his ear, which hit the floor with a quiet clatter. Luke managed to stand up properly, though, his face red, and clearly flustered. “Um. Anyway. So you- Uh.” He shook his head, more curls coming free of his bun and dancing around his temples when he moved. “Ashton wasn’t upset, you’re okay. He’s kind of hard to rattle. Calum and him have been joking about it, mostly. They just didn’t mention you were cute.”

Michael had watched Luke’s moment with the bottles, eyebrows furrowed in concern, but he hadn’t wanted to overstep. He’d gotten it sorted, anyway, and his head seemed fine. So he didn’t ask, just watched him with the same slightly cautious expression. Luke’s last sentence threw him off, though, and it was Michael’s turn to flush, staring at Luke a few beats longer than socially acceptable. “Oh, uh- you think- I’m not- I’m pretty, just, you know- uh. Thank you. You’re- the same. Cute. I mean.”

Luke laughed, soft and gentle and warm, meant to be with him rather than at him. Michael’s blush darkened, but he didn’t feel quite so bad about being an absolute idiot. “Thank you,” he said, head tilting a little to the side, smile back on his face. Luke was tall. Taller than Calum and Ashton had been, enough to make Michael aware of the difference. No wonder he’d been clumsy, though he’d seemed to have reclaimed his grace now, lanky limbs seeming only to add to his charm and poise rather than detract from it now that his footing was stable and no bottles were falling on the floor. 

“So why’d you come back, again?” Luke asked, yanking Michael out of his reverie. He’d moved to straighten some of the bottles and makeup palettes cluttered on the table. He glanced at Michael before his eyes shifted back to what he was doing. And yeah, that was definitely stray gold glitter stuck to his hands, front and back. 

“Oh. Uh. I wanted to say sorry to Ashton again. I just...haven’t been able to catch him. Came back yesterday and same thing.” Michael tugged at one of his hoodie sleeves, watching Luke’s long fingers tighten what looked like a tall bottle of latex. And okay, maybe he’d watched a few too many behind the scenes videos of his favourite horror movies, and wasn’t completely brand new to SFX stuff. 

Luke glanced up at him again, interest in his blue eyes and all over his face. His hands paused where they were. “You were here yesterday?”

“Uh. Yeah? I was just with Calum for a while but then he got some text and I didn’t get a chance to see Ashton before I had to leave.” He didn’t know what about that was so interesting, but whatever. At least he wasn’t tripping over his words now and could talk to Luke like a proper functioning human being. 

Luke hummed but didn’t offer an explanation for asking. “Do you want me to do your makeup or something while you wait?” He asked, as random and out of nowhere as anything. 

“What?” Michael asked, brows drawing together again. He was pretty sure Luke hadn’t said what he thought he’d said. 

“Do you want me to do your makeup while you’re waiting?” He repeated, gaze as earnest as ever. He wasn’t lying. 

“I mean, holy shit, yeah,” Michael said, maybe just a tad too eager. Get his makeup done by a makeup artist at the haunted house that had won awards for SFX? Hell fucking yeah! He wasn’t turning that opportunity down. Hopefully it went better than attending the haunted house had. 

Luke beamed, looking absolutely pleased with himself. “Okay, come over here and sit down and I will. Do you want, like, a cut or something? I have a couple spare prosthetic injuries I could use. I know I can’t do the missing eye one on you, you can’t really see in that one. I have a couple of the small claw ones, like I think I used on Ashton? If you want some of those.”

“Uh. Yeah, that works.” Michael made his way over and sat down in the chair, shifting a little bit. He’d never really had his makeup done before, but he was more excited to get to see someone do SFX up close. On him. 

“Can you pull the hoodie off?” Luke asked over his shoulder, starting to sort through his supplies. “I need more space. I can do it right below your collarbone, I think. That’s enough space. With Ashton, I think I slotted some at the top of one of his pecs and then some on his ribs, on his side.” 

Michael flushed but tugged his hoodie off, getting his head stuck in the stupid thing only momentarily, before it was off and he could ball it up in his lap. Luke turned back to look at him, humming softly to himself. He tugged his hair free from the bun, curls falling freely to frame his face, before pulling it right back again. Just like before, curls too short to fit in the bun curled around his temples and his ears. Luke ignored it, stepping closer with the small prosthetic in hand. 

He hummed a little again, eyeing Michael’s collarbones and chest. He tugged the neckline of Michael’s shirt down a little bit, holding the prosthetic up, just below his collarbone as he’d said. “This should work pretty well. Has anyone ever done makeup on you before?” Luke turned to grab something else, probably his adhesive, before turning back and frowning. “It might be easier, since I’ll need both hands for this. You can put it back on afterward, it’ll sit right above your neckline. Right here.” Luke tapped a finger lightly where he planned on putting the prosthetic.

Michael flushed. “Uh. Yeah, okay, I guess.” He really wasn’t used to this. Going shirtless in front of a cute guy? Yeah, that really didn’t happen. Like, ever. He reluctantly tugged his shirt off, though, still not about to turn this opportunity down. The shirt joined his hoodie, both balled up in his lap. He was rewarded with a sweet smile from Luke, before he was surveying the area he wanted to stick the prosthetic, which did little to help Michael’s blush.

“This might be a little bit cold. It’s room temperature, kind of.” Luke started applying the adhesive, completely in Michael’s personal space. “So did you like the house?” He asked, fanning the adhesive with his hand, gaze shifting to Michael’s face. “When you came? Before the thing with Ashton, I mean.”

“Yeah, I did. Uh. I’ve been wanting to come here for years, and I finally got to get a look. I really, really like horror shit, and thought about being an SFX artist but I don’t have the talent at all.” Michael resisted the urge to shift in place, or bounce his leg. He didn’t want to fuck up whatever Luke was doing. “It’s, uh, really well put together. No wonder it’s won awards and shit.”

Luke hummed, tapping the adhesive before grabbing the prosthetic and leaning down, tongue sticking out a little in concentration, as he carefully stuck it down. He held it in place for a moment, pulling back to inspect his work. He moved to grab one of his makeup palettes. “Yeah, it’s a lot of work to pull it together and get everything set up properly. But I can get out of some of it sometimes, since I do makeup.” He grinned at him before starting to add colour to the prosthetic. “You wanted to do SFX?” His gaze flickered up to him again, before again it dropped to what he was doing. “I could always show you some stuff, if you wanted. I’ve been doing it for a couple years, so I think I’d probably be okay at that.”

“Didn’t you guys win something last year for your makeup?” He asked, tilting his head a little bit.

Luke turned pink. “Well, yeah, but that wasn’t just me, that was the whole team. But, um. If you wanted that, I definitely could.”

It was then that it really clicked what Luke was offering. This was a chance for Michael to actually get hands-on experience with SFX and get to see it up close. Not only that, but he’d get the chance to actually do it himself, with someone else’s guidance, and see if he was actually shit at it. And that someone happened to be award winning. And really cute. “Fuck yeah, I definitely want that.” Okay, he needed to curb his excitement. Just a little.

Luke let out another one of his giggles, still working on the colouring of the prosthetic. “Okay. I’m happy to show you. I’ll get your number when I’m done? So we can set up a time?”

Michael definitely didn’t turn pink at that or anything. He was totally suave, totally used to getting cute guys’ numbers, especially while he was shirtless in front of them. Obviously. And maybe that was a little bit of a lie, and this was brand new. And maybe he was a little bit pink. “Uh. Yeah, that sounds good.”

Luke hummed, attention mostly back on the prosthetic. He was silent for a few moments before he spoke up again. “You said you wanted to do SFX. So what do you do instead?”

“Oh, I’m a film student. I work at, uh, Great Awakenings? The coffee shop a couple blocks down from here on campus.” Michael, again, had to resist the urge to shift around in place. Not because it felt weird, but because he didn’t know what to do with himself, or his nervous energy. He couldn’t even tap his foot or anything on the ground, for fear of fucking up what Luke was doing. 

“Oh, that’s neat! I’m doing philosophy right now. Ashton’s doing English. Focusing on literature, I think. And Calum’s doing psychology,” Luke flashed Michael a bright smile before going back to his work, still carefully adding pigment to the prosthetic. 

“Oh, that’s, uh...pretty cool. What made you choose philosophy?” Michael asked. 

Luke hummed a little to himself. “I dunno. Just thought it seemed interesting. I’m pretty happy doing this, but I don’t know if I can make a career out of it. Or if my skills are even enough to try.” He paused. “I know I’m good enough to work here, I just don’t know about beyond that,” he corrected, fingers stilling where they’d been working. It only took a moment before he was back at it again. 

Michael understood that, honestly. “Yeah, I know what you mean. That’s why I’m in film. I don’t know how far I’ll make it, either,” he said honestly. 

Luke gave him a frown, more adorable than it had any right being. “I’m sure you’ll be good at it, Mikey.”

Michael flushed at the nickname, but didn’t have any time to add anything before Luke was turning around to face the table. “Okay, I just have blood and then I’m done.” Luke grabbed the bottle and a tiny brush, turning around to face Michael yet again. He gave him a tiny smile before he was back to work, tongue poking slightly from between his lips in concentration. 

Luke was pretty. Michael was struggling to think about anything else, even with how desperately he wanted to do SFX, and how much he’d wanted to visit the haunted house. It only took a few minutes before Luke pulled back slightly, surveying his work. Good thing, too, Michael was starting to get chilly. “Okay,” he said, eyes still on the prosthetic, forehead creased slightly, lips pulled into a small pout. He looked thoughtful. Michael refused to admit it was adorable. “I think I’m done.” He gave Michael another smile, nose crinkling slightly with this one. 

Michael’s number one weakness was definitely still cute boys, because his brain short circuited immediately. He was saved from having to say anything, though, when a girl poked her head in the door, knocking twice on the doorframe to get Luke’s attention. “Hey, house’s opening in a few. Stand by in case of any fucked up makeup.” Luke just nodded, and then she left. 

Luke frowned a little at Michael. “Okay, you’ll probably have to go before we officially open and groups start coming through. I might get busy, and we aren’t supposed to have visitors.” Luke chewed at his lip, thinking. “Okay. Uh.” He pulled his phone out of his pocket - Michael didn’t know how he fit anything in his pants pockets, they were stupidly tight and didn’t look all that comfortable - and offered it to Michael. “Give me your number? I’ll text you and figure the whole Ashton thing out so you can say sorry to him or whatever. And then I can show you how to do makeup.”

Michael nodded, taking the outstretched phone from Luke and obediently putting his number in. “That, uh, sounds really great. Thanks, Luke.” He passed his phone back and earned another smile from Luke that definitely didn’t make his stomach flip. Michael went ahead and tugged his shirt  back on, careful not to fuck up his new prosthetic. 

“Okay, sweet. Can you find your way out or do you want me to show you?” Luke asked, as sweet as he’d been the whole time. 

Michael shook his head at the offer, though. “I’m okay. I can get out. Thanks, though. I’ll...I’ll catch you around?”

Luke gave him another smile. “Yeah. See you, Mikey.”

Michael made his way out of the haunted house for the third time, hoodie balled up in his hands despite the evening chill so he didn’t get fake blood on it. And maybe he stopped in front of the mirror once he got home to look at his makeup, stupid grin on his face remembering Luke (and the other cute boys that worked there). And maybe, just maybe, that was the first night since he’d punched Ashton that he didn’t seriously struggle to sleep. 

-----------------------------------

Michael had almost forgotten the whole dilemma, when he woke up to a text from Luke. The phone screen was stupidly blinding in the darkness of his bedroom, and he cursed himself for bothering to check his phone in the first place. To be fair, though, he’d only wanted to see the time - he slept with his phone on do not disturb for this very purpose - he hadn’t expected the text.

Luke H: hey, r u free 2day? :-)

Michael stared at the text, blinking sleep out of his eyes, before he managed to get his brain to function enough to reply. And of fucking course Luke added a nose to his emojis. He might have only met the guy once, but it definitely seemed like a Luke thing to do.

Michael: yeah I should be. y?

Michael didn’t have a chance to even roll over before Luke had replied, phone buzzing again in his hand. Did Luke have nothing better to do? It had to be fucking early in the morning, and Michael’s main priority was going back to sleep. Though, in Luke’s defense, it usually was.

Luke H: no reason

Luke H: can u meet me at that coffee shop @ 1 later 2day? 

Luke wasn’t making any more sense, even with his clarifications. And Michael was way too tired to think too much about his cryptic messages. So he just agreed.

Michael: yeah

His phone buzzed again, seconds after he’d hit send. Did Luke have nothing better to do than text Michael at fucking nine am on a Saturday morning? Didn’t he know how to sleep in?

Luke H: great :-)

Michael tossed his phone to the side with a sigh, resolving himself to being awake way, way too early. This wasn’t usually how he spent his mornings; normally, he slept in until noon if he didn’t have work, and spent the day catching up on homework he didn’t feel like doing during the week, and finished the day with pizza and a few rounds of FIFA. He didn’t usually meet cute boys at the coffee chop, for god knows what reason, and he usually didn’t wake up so fucking early.

The rest of his day passed slowly, starting with two cups of coffee to try and keep himself awake and functional. He could hear his mum in his head, reminding him that nine am isn’t even that early, that most people were already awake and functional by that point. So he just shook his head and told his imaginary mum to piss off, and that he wasn’t most people.

He managed to waste most of the day away until he was already running late to meet Luke. He tugged on a hoodie that he’d only worn once that week, making it objectively cleaner than most of his other ones.

By the time he made it to the coffee shop, he was a couple minutes past one. Which was fine, it was pretty standard for Michael. He never really knew what time it was, but he tried his best. At least he was only a couple minutes late this time. Hopefully Luke didn’t mind too much.

Speaking of the devil, Luke had taken a seat in the corner and, when Michael spotted him, was mid-laugh at something Ashton had said to him. Ashton, who was sitting right next to him, grin on his lips. Oh, fuck. Had Michael just been invited to fucking third wheel them or something? You could third wheel a friendship. Michael knew that, from trailing after a pair of best friends when he was a kid, before he’d just decided to be a loner for the rest of his life. But they seemed awfully cuddly now, too. Maybe they’d just invited him to laugh at him.

Or, the much smaller rational part of his brain pointed out, maybe Luke had invited Ashton since Michael had wanted to apologize to him again and had never gotten the chance. Maybe Luke was just being nice.

Michael just did his best to shove all those thoughts aside. There was no point in freaking himself out now that he was already here. Better to just figure out what Luke had planned and get it over with. Or enjoy it, maybe. Maybe. 

Michael made his way over to their table, awkwardly taking his seat in front of them. Luke turned and gave him a bright, happy smile. “Hey, you made it!” He greeted, clearly pleased. “I went ahead and brought Ashton, I hope you don’t mind. You said you wanted to apologize, and we both think you’re pretty cute, so-” Ashton smiled fondly, but nudged Luke anyway.

“Don’t freak him out right after he gets here,” Ashton chided gently. He gave Michael that warm smile, shifting in his chair. “Hey, Michael. Good to see you again.”

Michael nodded a little, socialization abilities immediately leaving him. “You look good,” he said, before flushing. “No, you don’t. I mean - fuck - I don’t mean that, I mean you look good now that you’re not covered in blood. Or, you looked good then too. Well, not really, because I hit you in the nose-” Michael snapped his mouth shut. “I mean, it’s good to see you too.”

Ashton just laughed, good naturedly, but Michael was pretty sure he was one fuck-up away from them hating him. Still, though, his laugh managed to calm some of that built-up nervousness he was holding on to.

“You look good too, no worries,” Ashton said, corner of his mouth pulling up into a smile. 

Michael just nodded a little, steeling himself before he spoke. “I’m, uh. Really sorry about hitting you. I didn’t mean to at all, and still don’t know how I managed to fuck up that badly.”

Ashton gave him another smile. Luke was busy fiddling with one of his curls, clearly only half paying attention to the conversation, if at all. “It’s okay. Really. You didn’t do any lasting damage, and you didn’t mean to. I’m fine now, and it made the managers have to reconsider the position. Besides, it just meant Calum and Luke were a little overprotective for a few days. I’m fine now, but they were worried for a couple days about bruising and possible lasting damage. You should really be apologizing to Luke for having to deal with blood.” Michael must have looked confused, because Ashton continued. “I don’t know why, but it freaks him out. He’s fine with all the SFX shit, he’s okay with gruesome fake injuries and fake blood, but any time there’s real blood? He freaks out.”

Luke abandoned his curl, tucking it behind his ear, to pout at Ashton. “Hey. I just don’t like it.” 

Ashton gave him another stupidly fond smile and draped an arm over the back of Luke’s chair. “I know.” Michael felt like he was third wheeling, again. Which, okay, Ashton and Luke were cute, but he couldn’t help the way his stomach dropped a little. He’d thought they were pretty cute, and he hadn’t deluded himself into thinking anything would happen with either of them. But it didn’t really make it feel much better to realize he was third wheeling.

Sometime into his quiet sulking (which only could’ve lasted a minute or two at most), Calum had come up behind him, because now he was pulling out the chair next to him. Michael was effectively caged in now by attractive guys. Which, okay, was manageable. If his brain would stay functional. At least now he wasn’t third wheeling Luke and Ashton by himself anymore.

“Hey,” Calum greeted all of them, smiling in the way that made his cheeks squish up and his eyes squint. And okay, yeah, Michael definitely needed to get back into the dating world. 

“Hey,” Luke said, brightening a little again at the sight of Calum. “Michael came.”

Calum nodded, giving Luke the same fond smile Ashton had. “I can see that, babe.”

Luke reached his hand across the table, towards Calum. Calum took it, gently squeezing his hand. And fucking great, had Michael gone from third wheeling to fourth wheeling? Was fourth wheeling even a fucking thing? It clearly was, if what he was thinking was correct. Because Calum, Luke, and Ashton seemed awfully fucking close - Calum had just called Luke babe, for Christ’s sake - and he was pretty fucking sure they were all dating. Or involved together in some way. So why fucking bother inviting Michael if they were going to act like that? It wasn’t like he thought it was a date or anything, but it seemed...rude to just be all couple-y with a fourth person there.

“I’ve gotta take a call,” Michael said, and the excuse to step out sounded lame even to his own ears. But it had seemed like they’d been...maybe not flirting with him, but flirty, and he felt pretty fucking awkward fourth wheeling them the way he was doing. So he wanted an excuse to step outside for a moment and breathe. He pushed his chair back, wincing at the noise it made, and awkwardly stumbled outside of the door. The bell above the door chimed as he did, which did nothing for his annoyance. 

He took a few steps to the side, so he wasn’t in anyone’s way if they tried to go into the little coffee shop. He leaned back against the wall with a sigh, forgetting his excuse, and completely forgetting that he should probably at least pretend to be on the phone. Even if his phone hadn’t been ringing in the first place.

His melodramatic inner monologue of suffering was interrupted by the stupid bell chiming again. It earned enough of his attention to look up. And none other than Luke was standing there in front of him, apologetic smile on his face. “Hi,” Luke said, making his way a little closer.

“Hey,” Michael said, a little unsure.

“I just, uh...I’m sorry,” Luke said, fidgeting a little in place. His gaze shifted down to his feet, where he was absently scuffing the toe of his converse against his other foot. “I should have warned you about us. We just...it’s still kind of new, telling people, and we all...well, we all thought you were really cute, and I thought the rest of it would be easy if I managed to get you here. But life isn’t really like the movies, and I was kind of a dick to not at least warn you. Ashton said I should have, and he was right. I should have.” 

Wait...what? Michael was left reeling a little. At least he wasn’t fucking crazy, and he’d been right about the three of them being together. Or, that was what it sounded like, at least. But the rest of it? What did Luke mean by them thinking he was cute? What the fuck? Why did Luke have to be so cryptic? “What?”

Michael was pretty sure Luke blushed. He just scuffed his toe against the ground again, before making eye contact. “I’m dating Calum and Ashton. Or, we’re all dating each other. Um...and we thought you were cute. We think you’re cute. And I fucked up and should have explained all of that earlier. So you didn't, uh...get blindsided by it when you got here.”

Well, that was...a lot. And unexpected. “So...is this a date or something?”

Luke shrugged. “It is if you want it to be.”

Michael considered that for a moment. Did he want it to be? He’d never dated more than one person before - hadn’t really dated many people in general, honestly. But he didn’t dislike the idea. He had gotten along with all of them individually pretty well...and they were already established, right? So maybe it would be easier for him to just join that. Maybe. “I think so, yeah.” He nodded a little.

Luke grinned, shoulders sagging a little with relief as. “Great! I’m sure we’ll talk about everything soon. Like, boundaries and limits and telling other people and the future and stuff like that. Ashton and Calum are pretty good about all that.” Luke reached for Michael’s hand, and he took it, letting Luke lace their fingers together. “For now, though, let’s go get coffee.” Luke tugged him back into the coffee shop, a triumphant grin on his lips. Michael couldn’t help the smile he gave him, just as fond as the ones Calum and Ashton had worn earlier. Something about Luke’s happiness was just...contagious and sweet. It made you happy to see him so happy.

-----------------------------------

The relationship ended up working out like a fucking dream. Michael had never felt so supported in his life, and he was pretty sure his boyfriends felt the same way. After the initial coffee date, they’d gotten themselves established, and talked about what they wanted and what they wanted the relationship to look like, and the future, just like Luke had said. And, to absolutely no one’s surprise, the conversation was guided by Ashton.

Telling his mum had arguably been the hardest part, but even that was made a little easier with their support. Answering her questions hadn’t been fun - he’d deflected the over-the-line questions, as anyone else would, and flat out refused anything rude - but they’d gotten it taken care of, and she’d been about as accepting as Michael could have hoped.

As promised, they managed to get Michael a job at the haunted house the following year. One of the managers had gotten fired after the incident with Ashton - not that that had been the cause, but he’d been a massive dick about it, according to Calum and Luke, and it hadn’t been a good look, so he’d gotten canned - which let Calum get a promotion. Ashton was happy to stick with being an actor. As long as, he’d said when they’d broken the news to Michael, stupid grin on his face, no one else punched him in the face. He didn’t want another boyfriend. It had earned him three eye rolls, and three fond smiles, from each of his stupidly indulgent boyfriends.

But it had meant there was an opening for the merch stand, and Michael would get three glowing reviews. So they’d managed to get him the job. And, Calum had reminded them at the time, pleased smile on his face, they had a lot of sway with one of the managers.

So after everything got settled, Michael’s life was the best it had ever been. He had three loving, supportive, wonderful boyfriends, a job he loved, and date night every Friday. Even if he was working, they were happy to come sit and entertain him until he was off. He didn’t feel left out with them anymore, either; after that first time, they’d gotten it sorted, and were quick to comfort and console him.

Ashton never fucking let him live down the way they met, though. He made dad jokes about it as often as they let him - “watch out for Michael, he packs a punch,” “ah, Michael’s got quite the feisty personality,” “Michael’s really got a nose for this sort of thing. He fucked up mine, so it’s only fair, I suppose” - which was way, way too often, given how bad they all were. Michael couldn’t even bring himself to care, though. Not when accidentally punching him in the face had been the one thing to pull his life together. Ashton’s dad jokes were definitely worth all of that.

#5soshalloweenevent2020 #5sos fanfic #ashton irwin fanfiction #luke hemmings fanfiction #michael clifford fanfiction #calum hood fanfiction #my writing #queue #yall i am BUZZING im so excited for this and that i wrote PROMPTS and people are WRITING THEM #like i DID THIS SHIT!! and people participated!! #VIBRATING w excitement... #i mean this is scheduled #but its likely that im around when it posts #i need instant gratification u see #i will b getting ready for virtual halloween tho <3

[jungshookz]

stuck with you || [roommate!taehyung]

❥ pairing: kim taehyung x reader

❥ genre: university!au, enemies-to-lovers, fratboy!tae??, comedy that’ll either make you chuckle out loud or roll your eyes and snoRT or maybe u won’t laugh that’s cool too, domestic fluff because i want to go grocery shopping with tae toO (but also fluff in general!!), smutty smut so make sure to read this with your phone’s brightness lowered all the dang way, hi @ librarian!namjoon!!! fratboy!jungkook is also in here 

❥ wordcount: 37k if ur reading this on mobile get rekt

❥ summary: kim taehyung becoming your new roommate is definitely up there on the list of the worst things that have ever happened to you. 

❥ note: it’s finally here! this is my biGGEst fic to date and all i’m going to say is get comfortable and maybe get a snack because you, my friend, are about to read a whole ass novel and embark on a rollercoaster of a fiC. hopefully this was worth the wait!! i didn’t think i was capable of writing so much and my fingers are about to fall off but it was totaLLY worth it!!!! there’s kind of a 10 things i hate about you vibe if u squint and also most of the dumB things tae does in this fic were inspired by my ex-roommate so i hope she never finds this lol but also everyone say thank u to her for inspiring roommate!tae! i hope u guys love/hate him just as much as i do! happy reading!! 

pst if u wanna talk to y/n or tae (or even applicant #8 if ur brave enough) ((you’ll get it soon)) u know what to do ;-)

(gif isn’t mine!)

(((and the read more function iS there but most of the time it doesn’t work on mobile :// i am sorry don’t attack me by sending passive-aggressive anon messages)))

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“what do you mean you’re moving out?!”

namjoon can safely say that he’s never seen such pure, unadulterated rage simmering in your eyes

some apple juice dribbles out from your straw as your grip tightens around your juice box

he swallows nervously and tugs at his collar

is it just him or is it getting kind of hot in here

“i-i mean, you know, i… i don’t really know how else to explain it..,., i’m moVing out.,.”

it’s a good thing he decided to break it to you while you guys were in a public space because he knows what you’re capable of

all he’s going to say is that there are witnesses everywhere so you probably shouldn’t hurt him right now

“who are you going to be living with?” you huff and lean forward a little “i’ll kill them.”

“i’ll be living by myself…,.,” namjoon smiles sheepishly “…please don’t kill me” he adds meekly

“no promises.” you mutter grumpily and take a sip of juice

you knEW there was a reason why namjoon gave you two cookies instead of one today

he was trying to butter you up!!!!!

that smooth bastard

a moment of silence goes by

you groan and immediately slump down on the table and namjoon jumps slightly

“namjOON why didn’t you tell me earlier??”

“i’m sorry!!!!!! i’ll make it up to you somehow!!!!” he reaches across the table to pat your head “and i’ll pay my share of the rent for this month so you don’t have to worry about the power going out!”

“that’s not the poinT, joon! the point is in first year we promised we’d live with each other until we graduated and you’re pulling out of the deal a yEAR earlier-“

“i will very gladly help you find a new roommate! i know you haTe meeting new people so i will happily sit by your side as we meet all the candidates. look, i already put an ad up for you and a bunch of people already messaged me saying that they were interested!”

“but i don’t want a new roommate.” you grumble and prop an elbow up on the table before resting your cheek against your fist “who’s going to pack my lunches for me now?”

“is that the only reason why you’ve kept me around for so long?” namjoon teases lightly and reaches across to pinch your cheek “c’mon, it’s not going to be all that bad! part of university life is opening yourself up to new people and all that!”

namjoon frowns slightly when you don’t respond

there’s a little divot in between your brows and the smallest of pouts on your mouth anD your eyes are getting a little glossy so he can’t help but feel a little bad

it’s not that he’s sick of living with you

it’s just that.,,. he feels like third year is a good time to get his own place!

he’s loVed living with you and it’s not like he’s never going to see you again!!!!! he’ll just see you less!!

besides the fact that you two literally live together you guys practically see each other every day on campus because you always have lunch together (except for wednesdays and the occasional friday when namjoon has lectures/tutorial sessions that bleed into lunch time)

not to mention you’re always welcome to come and hang out at his new bachelor pad

namjoon purses his lips before letting out a sigh “say, how about this? i’ll continue to pack your lunches two times a week, how does that sound?”

you slurp up the rest of your juice and namjoon reaches over to yank the straw out of your mouth when he notices you starting to chew on it (you always start chewing on your straws when you’re stressed about something)

“are we still going to hang out on the weekends and stuff?”

“of course! and you can come hang out with me at the library after classes and we can walk to the bus stop together and then go our separate ways”

namjoon probably shouldn’t have thrown in that last bit but oh well

you let out a sigh “pack my lunches three times a week and you have yourself a deal.”

namjoon sticks his hand out and you give him a firm shake and follow it up with a fist bump before ending it by wrapping your pinky around his (when u guys came up with this handshake he was the one who added that last part)

“so -“ you raise a brow “let’s figure out who i’m going to be replacing you with.”

namjoon gives you a warning look

and so, it begins

the hunt for your new roommate

this should be easy!

a lot of people have contacted namjoon through his ad showing interest in the apartment and namjoon did you the favour of organising all the names onto one long list

namjoon actually took care of a lot of the details so all you have to do is sit there and talk to people

and you love talking to people!!!

you have a long day ahead of you but if it ends in you getting a new roommate you’ll be satisfied

luckily it’s a sunday and you don’t usually have plans on sunday

you even put out snacks and drinks for them on the coffee table to show how amazing of a roommate you’ll be (but also you put it out mainly because you know you’re going to become peckish halfway through the day)

“so, what are some of your hobbies?” you smile lightly and lean back against the couch

katie (she’s suPEr duper nice and you have a good feeling about her and she’s literally the firSt person you’re interviewing) grins excitedly before clapping her hands together and turning around to unzip her backpack

your brows knit together in confusion when you hear the slight tinkering of glass coming from her bag

and then she unzips it fully and shows you what’s inside

huh

“you have a bag of… empty mason jars…?” you trail off and tilt your head

why in the world would she collect empty mason jars

maybe she… sells mason jars?

either way it’s kind of odd but as long as she’s not hurting anyone it’s whatever

you can deal with a mason jar hoarder

“yep!” katie sighs and taps the side of the jar gently “i collect sounds.”

you blink owlishly at her and the whole time she keeps a faT smile on her face

“you collect- i’m sorry, i don’t think i follow-”

“do you like harry styles? i went to his concert last summer.”

you’re not sure how harry styles relates to mason jars but

aight

“oh yeah, i love harry styles, he’s very easy on the eyes and his songs are-“ she pulls out a mason jar and turns it so that you can look at the label on the front “…does that say harry styles concert?”  

“this memory is vEry special to me so i don’t usually open it, but i quite like you, so i’ll share some of this with you-“ she leans forward and untwists the cap before lifting it juSt a little bit

“oh, jesus.” namjoon mutters to himself

…

namjoon raises a brow when he sees you lean in a little

you have goT to be kidding

you cannot seriously be falling for this  

“ya hear that?????” she squeals and closes the jar before tucking it back into her bag “when i get angry i just listen to my sounds and they bring me to my happy place.” she sighs and cradles another jar to her chest

you squint your eyes to read the label

the label on it says-  

my goD that jar is labelled ‘grandma’s funeral’

what sound would even come out of that jar?? the sound of her family soBBing??

“o-oh! that’s… great. it’s good to have… hobbies.” your knuckles tighten around the clipboard and you swallow thickly

okay

so

it turns out katie is on a one way train to crazy town

“…we’ll let you know!”

now

the next guy

you’re definitely a fan of

probably even more than katie before you found out she was kind of veRy crazy

in fact

you like him so much that you’re allowing him to stay and chat for longer since the next person texted namjoon and said they were going to be a little late

his name is bukjoon which is a name you’ve never really heard before but the most important thing here is that he seems like a sweet guy anD he seems like a great roommate

he fits into your life perfectly and you’re honestly ready to just hand him a pen so that he can sign the lease

namjoon, on the other hand

namjoon doesn’t like the vibes from this guy because he’s eErily similar to him and he doesn’t know how you’re not picking that up

also he brought homemade chocolate chip cookies shaped like stars and you’ve already eaten like half the batch and namjoon doesn’t like that you haven’t touched the finger sandwiches that he made for you

“just to double check… your- your name is bukjoon. kim bukjoon?” namjoon tilts his head slightly before looking down at the list of names again

“yep!” the other male smiles brightly at namjoon before turning to look at you “now, a little bit about me as a potential roommate… i love cooking, cleaning, doing laundry - that includes ironing, steaming - i love all of it!”

you gasp

“that totally works out because usually namjoon takes care of the cooking and the cleaning and the laundry! i help take out the trash so-“

“oh, great! i hate taking out the trash.” bukjoon laughs lightly and namjoon narrows his eyes when he spots the faintest of dimples embedded in his cheeks

what in the freSH hell is this

he trails his eyes over bukjoon’s crisp button up tucked into a pair of slacks

his sensible dress shoes glint slightly from the lights and namjoon looks down at his own pair of dress shoes

glint

he isn’t going to lie

he feels slightly threatened right now

“also, i’m a total nature documentary freak-“

“oh my god, that’s so perfect! i love watching nature documentaries and i think you’ll make a great replacement for nam-“

“you know whAT-“ namjoon looks bukjoon dead in the eye as he aggressively scratches out his name on the clipboard “we’ll let you know.” he smiles cooly and tilts his head “…you can leave now.”

and bukjoon can take his damn star-shaped cookies with him for aLL namjoon cares

now, this guy…  

to say the least,,.

is very, very creepy (he didn’t even write his name down on the sign up sheet - he wrote down ‘applicant #8’)

“so…” you clear your throat after a full minute of silence (you asked him how his day was going so far and he just glared at you in response) “are you a student or do you wo-“

“i work.”

“cool! what kind of job-“

“i’m an embalmer.”

ah

yes

embalming

…what the heck is embalming

“an embalmer- sorry, what’s an embalmer?” you furrow your brows and lean forward a little bit

“i preserve corpses. would you like to know more about how to embalm bodies?”

okay ur not saying that’s a little weird

but uh

that’s a liTTle weird

“not particu-“

“there’s a lot of work that goes into it. for example, i have to embalm arteries as well after completely draining the blood from the heart.”

wait what

“how about you tell us about how you’d be as a potential roommate for y/n?” namjoon clears his throat and gives applicant #8 a polite smile

“i keep things very clean. very neat. i go to bed quite late. i do not usually invite guests over. i am quiet. please respect my privacy. do not go into my room. especially at night.”

you nod in agreement “yes, of course, i would never want to invade-“

“also, if the police ever call you, it would be best if you just pretended that you’ve never heard of me.”

uH

you swallow thickly and scoot a little closer to namjoon

namjoon reaches over and holds his arm out over you as if the both of you are preparing for this guy to just whiP a knife out and stab your eyes out

applicant #8 looks around before staring at you dead in the eye

you smile uneasily and wrap an arm around namjoon’s bicep “hey, that’s… funny! that’s a funny joke-“

“i see dead people.”

“wE will let you know!” both you and namjoon exclaim simultaneously

“i don’t know how much longer i can do this.” you groan and flop your arm over your eyes as you slump back against the couch

“you better buCk up because we’re only halfway through with the list.” namjoon looks over at the front door when the doorbell rings

you give your cheeks a couple pats to wake yourself up

c’mon

you can do this

you just have to get through a handful of people and then you’ll be done

namjoon squeezes his own cheeks because they’re so soRe from smiling politely all day

he plasters another smile on his face as he opens the door

“hi, you must be-“

“before we get started, you need to know a couple of things about me.” she pushes past namjoon and plops herself down on the couch

you and namjoon exchange glances and joon shrugs before closing the door

“well…” you clear your throat and cross your legs “that is what we’re here for, so-“

“firstly, i’m going to need to rearrange all of this furniture after moving in. the feng shui in here is way off.” she scrunches her nose up before digging through her huGe suede mary poppins looking bag

“i don’t know a lot about feng shui but i’d be happy to rearrange the furniture if you-“

“i’m in touch with my inner chi. are you?” she raises a brow and pulls out a tuft of sage and a lighter “the energy here is… dark. i’ll cleanse this place for you.”

“that’s really not- well, actually, the last guy in here was kind of creepy so maybe the sage is a good idea.” the sage immediately starts smoking as soon as she lights it and she gets up and starts pacing around the living room “i, uh, i don’t know a lot about my inner chi either, so…”

“yeah, that’s pretty obvious.” she snorts and waves the stick around

okay

weLL

you could do without the attitude but so far she seems harmless

“…is that going to set off the fire alarm?”

“i’ll go and open the balcony doors.” namjoon murmurs and points to the balcony windows before getting up off the couch

“i need to be in the privacy of this apartment for at least five hours a day because i like to take the time to meditate alone and i don’t want you to disturb my crystals.”

“you don’t want me to disturb your crystals…?”

“they charge in the sun to regenerate energy so i’ll need you out of the apartment from… 12 to 5. crystals are good for my energy and my soul.”

jesus christ

that’s IT

you’ve had ENOUGH

“i’m going to need you out of my apartment right now before i shove those crystals up your-“

“we’ll let you know!” namjoon slaps a hand over your mouth before you get to finish threatening her

“well… what do you think?” namjoon shuts the door behind him after escorting the crazy sage lady out (she was upset that she wasted her tuft of sage at a place she definitely wasn’t going to be living in and you’re pretty sure she tried casting a curse over the apartment but namjoon kicked her out before she had a chance to do that) “that was everyone…”

“you’re kidding me. that was everyone?” you frown and look over the list of names that have all been crossed out

“i mean… we met twenty eight candidates today… that’s a lot of people!” namjoon purses his lips and taps his pencil against the clipboard “just to let you know, that bukjoon guy was my least favourite-“

“i liked him! he was really nice-“

“he wasn’T-“

“he was-!”

“look, i have to go because i took the late night shift at the library-“ namjoon checks the time on his watch and winces slightly “shit, i’m going to be late!” he hands you his clipboard before picking his backpack up off the couch and unzipping it to check if he has everything “dinner’s in the fridge, don’t open the door for strangers - definitely don’t open the door for that embalmer guy if he comes back - if you turn the stove on please remember to turn it off… i’ll be back by midnight!” he smiles brightly and swings his backpack over his shoulder

“see you later, alligator” you hum and set the clipboard aside before making yourself comfortable on the couch

“in a while, crocodile!”

slam

you purse your lips in thought as you flick through all the new movies and shows on netflix

you could binge watch friends for like the tenth time

maybe watch that new murder mystery movie?

you definitely don’t want to watch a horror movie alone because you get the feeling that applicant #8 is going to pop out of nowhere and slit your throat with a dull knife

oOh you can watch that new nature docuseries

surprisingly those nature documentaries aren’t as boring as you thought they were

you can thank namjoon for your newfound love for nature documentaries

you nod to yourself and turn the volume up before pulling the throw blanket up to your chin

time to watch tv until your eyes roll out of your skull!!!

>:-)

“nothing symbolises our relationship with the high seas better than the blue whale…”

it’s about 10:30 now

namjoon left for work at around 5

the pasta casserole that namjoon made for you sits on the coffee table half eaten and with a fork stabbed into it

an open bag of tortilla chips and some guacamole also sit abandoned on the table

you’re pretty sure you ate like a family sized serving of pasta but you know what

sometimes it just be like dat!!

you’re also pretty sure namjoon would’ve scolded you for not using a plate and instead eating straight out of the pan but he’s not here so touGH luck

you’re on episode five-and-a-half of the docuseries (each episode is about an hour long) and unsurprisingly your eyes are starting to get a bit fuzzy because of how long you’ve been staring at the screen

which is why you took a break from your binge to take a shower just to give your eyes a break

you left the episode playing because it always creeps you out when the apartment is completely silent and you’re home alone

so now you’re sitting on the arm of the couch with your hair wrapped up in a towel and a toothbrush shoved into your mouth

“weighing 200 tons and 30 metres long, these are the largest animals ever to have existed…” you brows knit together in fascination when a blue whale swims across the screen

wowIE those things are huge

you reach down to scratch at the side of your bare thigh before continuing to brush your teeth

chakkachakkachakkachakka

you’re so enthralled with the whale on the screen that it takes you a couple seconds to register that someone’s knocking on the front door

you turn to look at the door and feel a little bit of pAnic rise within you when you hear them knock again

you don’t know if you should quickly run to the bathroom to spit your toothpaste out or just open the door with a frothy mouth

eh

it’s probably namjoon

he always forgets his house keys!!!

“i’m comingph, i’m comingph!” you reach up to wipe at the toothpaste beginning to dribble out of your mouth as you make your way to the door

chakkachakkachakkachakka

you shove your toothbrush into the side of your mouth before reaching down for the handle

“did yvou pheriously forget your keyphs again-?!” you open the door expecting to see namjoon standing there with a sheepish smile on his face but-

huh

“…you’re not namvjoon.”

oh good god

you have no idea who this person is but whoever he is he’s making you sweAT

he’s wearing a plain white tee tucked into a pair of distressed blue jeans and he has a comfy looking black and white flannel draped over him as well

obviously dyed honey brown hair peeks out from underneath his beanie

two black studs in his ears

“sorry to let you down.” he smirks lightly and his tongue pokes out to swipe over his bottom lip

he has the kind of face that you would describe as rather boyish and handsome

very chiseled as well

and that voice

oh, that voice

it’s slow and deep and it feels like you’re wading through warm honey

it hits you that you literally don’t have any shorts on and you instinctively tug your (namjoon’s) shirt down in a pathetic attempt to cover up a little more

you pull your toothbrush out of your mouth and pRay that you don’t accidentally spit on this veRy attractive stranger and you reach up to wipe your mouth with the back of your hand

you have half a mind to just swallow the mouthful of toothpaste but that’s just nasty yo

so you kind of manoeuvre the toothpaste to one side of your mouth so that you can speak normally

“can i help u?” you clear your throat

he pulls a flyer out from his back pocket and you recognise that it’s the roommate flyer namjoon made

oh

“you still looking for a roommate?”

“who… wants to know?” you clear your throat and keep your eyes trained on the flyer

“i’m taehyung. kim taehyung.”

cool so he introduces himself like james bond

“my friends call me tae.”  

“well, taehyung, it’s nice to meet you. i’m y/n y/l/n. …my friends call me… y/n…” you stick your hand out for him to shake and turn your head discreetly to look over your shoulder

the living room is a mESS

you turn back to face him “…could you give me a minute?”

taehyung doesn’t get a chance to respond before you’re shuTTing the door in his face

the next minute spent is the most chaotic minute you’ve ever experienced in your entire life

you turn the volume down on the tv and for a secOnd you can’t help but wonder if taehyung is going to judge you based on what you’re watching on netflix

maybe you should turn the tv off??

nO no you’re overthinking it just leave it on

you put the bag of chips and the tub of guac on the empty side of the casserole dish before rushing to the kitchen and shoving everyThing into the fridge

you spit the toothpaste out into the sink and quickly rinse your mouth out before tossing your toothbrush aside

it would probably be a good idea to leave your hair up in a towel otherwise your wet hair is going to make you look like a drowned rat

is it too late to slap on some makeup??? maybe cover up the pimple on your forehead or drAw some damn eyebrows on????

taehyung raises a brow when he hears a loud thump from inside the apartment

hm

you nearly trip over yourself as you hop back to the front door while slipping a pair of pyjama shorts on

jesus chRISt

you check yourself out in the mirror hanging on the wall next to the coatrack

well

this is as presentable as you’re going to get

“everything okay?” taehyung laughs lightly when you open the door sliGhtly out of breath

“everything’s perfect!” you nod enthusiastically “come on in” you step aside to let taehyung in and you let out a breath as you shut the door behind you

okay

just take it easy

be cool

be cool!!

you’re super cool

cooler than a dang cucumber that’s how cool you are

“pretty nice place you got here…” taehyung hums as he looks around and makes his way to the couch

“thank you! make yourself comfortable… do you want some tea, or coffee, or… i have a couple juice boxes in the fridge if you’re into that?” you scratch the back of your neck and gesture towards the kitchen

“a juice box sounds nice!” he smiles and plops himself down on the couch and smooths his hand over the soft fabric

you nod and head to the kitchen but turn to glance at him over your shoulder briefly “so, taehyung, tell me about yourself!”

“well, i’m a third-year student, i’m majoring in business and economics, minoring in art history, uh… oh, sorry i came by unannounced, by the way! i meant to sign up for a slot but i completely forgot and i figured it’d be alright to swing by briefly just to talk to you-“

“it’s totally fine! no big deal” you step out from the kitchen with two boxes of juice in your hands and you hand one to taehyung before sitting down next to him “as you saw i was just getting ready for bed but it’s honestly no biggie”

he punctures the hole with the straw before taking a sip

“tell me about your previous living situations” you cross your legs and turn to face him

taehyung tucks one leg under the other and turns to face you a little more

“well, i used to live in a… house, with a couple of other guys, but uh, i just thought it’d be a good idea to find a place with less people, you know? sharing a washroom with four other guys gets rough sometimes.” he snorts lightly and takes another sip of juice

“hm, that’s a fair point. i mean, if you lived here you would have to share a washroom with me but i’m a loT cleaner than four guys.” your eyes flicker to the tv for a second

you’ve always been awful at maintaining eye contact and there’s nO way you’re going to be able to hold taehyung’s gaze for more than five seconds without breaking into a cold sweat

“yeah, i don’t think i have to worry about you pissing all over the floors.” taehyung teases and shakes his head “but, a little bit more about myself as a roommate since that’s what i’m here for - i’m pretty chill, so i don’t think you have a lot you need to worry about. y’know, i try to keep things neat, try to keep things quiet and respectful and all that. you don’t have to worry about me bugging you or anything because i usually just keep to myself - it won’t even feel like you have a roommate!” he jokes before clearing his throat “is there anything that you… want to share with me?”

“well, let me think…” you purse your lips in thought and shift slightly “i think it’s super important that household chores are split evenly so like… if you finish the milk then yoU should be responsible for buying a brand new carton of milk at the supermarket! i actually have a chore chart stuck on the fridge so that we can see who’s in charge of what for the week.”

you falter slightly

oof

does the whole chore chart thing make u sound dorky

to be fair the chore chart was namjoon’s idea so he’S the dork in this situation but there’s no time to expLAIN

QUICK change the subject and make yourself sound like leSS of a freak

“uh, paying the bills on time is always a good thing! so… as long as you have money for me at the end of each month it’ll keep me from nagging you - noT that i’m like constantly going to be nagging you if you moved in with me but you know-“

taehyung lets himself space out for a moment as you continue to babble on and on

from what he can gather you seem like a decent person

a little bit of a doofus but still a decent person

you’re not bad to look at either

there’s something oddly endearing about you but he can’t quite figure it out yet

he nods and smiles and continues to pretend like he’s listening to you when in reality he’s singing that new taylor swift song in his head

all he has to do is play along and work his charm so that he can weasel his way into this apartment

are you still talking about the chore chart?

he has to admit

you seem like you’re a little uptight about certain things but honestly he just needs a place to live for the next year so he’ll have to find a way to deal with it

“you can go over the rules when i officially move in, how does that sound?” taehyung reaches out and places his hand over yours and you feel your cheeks flush slightly at the sudden initiation of c o n t a c t

“oh! uh, well, there’s a whole list of people that are also looking to move in so i can’t just…”

this is why you can’t do these things alone

if namjoon was here he would know exactly what to do

he’d probably tell the applicant that he’ll keep in touch and let him know but it seems like taehyung is taking advantage of the fact that you are alone..,., and defenceless.,,..

taehyung is noT leaving without knowing that he’s going to be your new roommate

“i’d like to move in as soon as possible, if that’s okay with you.”

“i, um, well, the lease expires this thursday and namjoon’s moving out on friday-“

“great! i can totally do friday.” taehyung chirps and sets his empty juice box down on the coffee table

waiT

your eyes widen when you realise that he’s talking as if you agreed to let him move in which is something you definitely did noT do yet

“moving in will be easy because i only have a couple of boxes of stuff anyway.” he hums and scoots a little closer to you until his knee bumps up against yours

“i-i, uH, you see, the thing is..,,.” you laugh uneasily and put your own juice box down “i still need to think about-“

“i personally think we’d make great roommates, don’t you, darling?” he hums and reaches over to tuck a strand of hair back into your towel with his pinky and you swallow thickly

for some reason you feel like you’re not allowed to say no to him

you already hate saying no to people but you feel like you really reaLLY can’t say no to taehyung

friCk

it feels like everything is happening too quickly

what would namjoon do

#wwnd!!!!!!!!

okay

u know what

just say: ’i’ll let you know’

i’ll

let

you

know

:-)

saY IT

….SAY IT

“…i’ll see you on thursday, y/l/n!” taehyung chirps happily as he steps into the elevator

he pokes his head out to give you one last wave and you let out a nervous laugh before shooting him a thumbs up

you close the door and reach up to scratch your head  

what just happened

what just haPPEneD

“…what just happened?” you breathe out and press your hands against your reddening cheeks

what just happened was that yoU just found your new roommate

goodbye kim namjoon

hello kim taehyung

you feel like you need to take another shower to shake yourself out of the funk that kim taehyung has put you in

“oh, by the way!!!! i don’t know how i completely forgot to tell you this but - i found a roommate!” you smile excitedly as you and joon take a seat at your usual lunch table

“oh!!!!!! that’s great!!!” namjoon grins while polishing his apple on his sweater vest “what’s his name?” he falters and narrows his eyes at you “…it better noT be buk-“

“taehyung! kim taehyung? something like that.” you shrug and take your baggie of baby carrots and cucumbers out of your lunch box

namjoon packed ur lunch for you :~)

“kim taehyung? kim… taehyung…” namjoon furrows his brows

that name sounds oddly familiar and he doesn’t know why

“i think you’ll really like him! he’s super polite and very charming and-“

“oh! kim taehyung!” namjoon’s eyes light up for a second when he remembers the face to the name

and then you can point out the moment the light dies in his eyes

uh oh

that doesn’t seem good

“oh. kim taehyung…” he lets out a breath “huh. i didn’t think you… would get along with someone like him.”

“what are you talking about?” you knit your brows together in confusion

namjoon presses his lips together and shrugs

“you really haven’t heard about kim taehyung? at all?”

you shake your head

“all i’m going to say is one time he came into the library with his frAT-bro friends - they were all very obviously drunk out of their minds - and he used the copier machine to make copies of his bare ass before plastering it around the library.” namjoon raises a brow before shuddering “i still get nightmares about it. i can’t touch the copier machine without disinfecting it three times beforehand.”

you wince

oof

that doesn’t seem like someone you’d want to be roomies with

“maybe we’re thinking of different kim taehyungs?” you offer meekly and crunch down on a carrot

“mm… no. i’m sure we’re talking about the exact same one. super deep voice - one that would be good for narrating a nature doc or one of those asmr videos on youtube - dyed brown hair - i think i saw him walking around with like, eLmo red hair once - are we talking about the same one?”

frick

“…okay, we’re talking about the same one.” you swallow your bite and suck some hummus off your thumb “well, you said he was drunk! people do silly things all the time when they’re drunk. you know, like that time you got super wasted and wouldn’t let me leave your room until i sat down and read the entire dictionary as your bedtime story.”

“what are you two squabbling about without us?” you jump when hoseok and jin suddenly appear with their lunches

hoseok slides in next to you and steals the baby carrot pinched in between your fingers before popping it into his mouth

“y/n’s new roommate is kim taehyung.” namjoon deadpans and hoseok and jin immediately exchange glances

“oh boy”

“bold choice”

“wha- am i the only one who doesn’T know about kim taehyung??” you exasperate and steal one of hobi’s fries in retaliation

he smacks your hand immediately and you scowl

“he’s a playboy - and that’s coming from me.” jin raises a brow and namjoon nods in agreement

“so what? what he does in his personal life doesn’t matter to me.”

“it’ll matter when he starts bringing girls home and the only thing you’ll be able to hear is obnoxious moaning aND the headboard knocking against the wall.” hobi snorts

“well, if it gets out of hand i’m sure he’ll tone it down after i talk to him about it.” you grumble and push your lunch box away a liTTle more aggressively than intended

“as if kim taehyung is going to listen to you - you’re about as intimidating as a baby lamb, y/n.”

you hate it when the guys treat you as if you’re a helpless little baby

you can make decisions on your own!!!!!

even if this was a bad decision it doesn’t matter because the point is yoU made this decision all by yourself and that’s something that’s super important to you

you don’t need to rely on anyone else!!!!!

with that being said

you’ve completely lost your appetite

you feel sick to your stomach

you can’t help but feel like you just made a fatAL mistake

the boys are acting like you signed a deal with the devil and you’re starting to believe you actually did

“how do you guys know so much about him anyway??”

“finish your lunch or else you’ll get cranky later-“ namjoon pushes your lunch box back towards you and raises a brow and you huff before digging out your sandwich

“i’m very good at eavesdropping.” jin points out “also, he’s usually at all the parties i’m at. aLso i hung out with him a couple times at those parties - he’s a friendly guy, don’t get me wrong, and i’m sure all it took to convince you to let him become your roommate was him looking at you with those chocolatey brown puppy dog eyes - but you, my friend… you’re fucked.”

“i am not fucked!”

“he’s friends with…” hobi trails off and drums his fingers against the table “what are their names again?”

“park jimin and jeon jungkook.” jin’s always been a walking encyclopaedia of campus gossip which is proving to be very useful at this time “they’re all basically the exact same person. sleeping around, causing trouble, being dickheads in general… one time i got hit in the back of my head with jungkook’s football and i didn’t even get a sorry-”

“you just said he was a friendly guy!!!” you don’t mean to interrupt jin in the middle of his fun little story but you just need to know what you signed yourself up for

“yeah, he’s friendly when he wants something from you, duh. he’s a dickhead the rest of the time.”

o god

taehyung definitely wanted something from u

he wanted the apartment from you

does this mean he’s going to become an asshole now??

what have you DONE

“…i’m sure it’ll be fine, though!” hobi smiles and pats your shoulder gently “…you gonna finish your sandwich or what?”

thursday rolls around muCh sooner than you would’ve liked

after your many, maNy conversations with jin (you sat him down and forced him to tell you eveRything that he’s ever heard about taehyung) you have come to the conclusion that kim taehyung is not who he presented himself to be and the next year of your life is going to be a living nightmare

he sleeps around a lot (which is totally fine with you like that’S not the thing you have a problem with) = loud sex is going to keep you up!!!!

he’s messy = you’re neat-ish!!!!

he’s a night owl = you’re a morning person-ish!!!!

he’s loud = you’re quiet-ish!!!!

he likes to throw parties = you hate parties!!!! you hAte the idea of having a group of strangers chilling out in your apartment getting their grubby straNGer hands all over your couch and your tv and youR food and youR juice boxes

“please don’t leave me.” you whimper and tighten your grip around namjoon’s arm before propping your chin up on his shoulder

most of namjoon’s stuff is already at his apartment but he came back to pick up one last box of his belongings but he feels like he should’ve just abandoned his sweaters

because you won’t let him leave and he needs to gO because he’s roasting a chicken in his oven!!!!!!  

“you’ll be fine, relax.”

“can’t you stay here til he comes?”

“my apartment’s going to burn down if i don’t leave now. look, i’m only a ten minute walk away, if you’re overwhelmed, you’re welcome to come and spend the night.”

you purse your lips in thought and wrinkle your nose

“maybe i should just move in with you-“

“absolutely noT you are not moving in with me-“ namjoon reaches over and thwacks your forehead so that you let go of his arm “good luck - i’ll text you later!”

damn it

so

taehyung swings by an hour and a bit later with a bright, boxy smile on his face ready to move on into namjoon’s room

you had to give yourself a mini pep talk before opening the door for him with a forced smile

you asked him if he needed any help bringing anything up but he insisted on taking care of everything himself because he didn’t want to be a bother to you which definitely surprised you

you also offered to help him unpack his boxes but he told you to take it easy and just watch some tv or something (“why don’t you watch one of those animal documentaries you like so much?”)

maybe jin was wrong about him!!

see

you shouldn’t believe rumours so quickly!!

you were silly to get all scared and panicky

you gave him a quick tour even though there’s not a lot to the apartment

his bedroom is next to yours

the bathroom is down the hallway

the kitchen is there

this is the living room

the laundry room is on the 10th floor and you keep a little baggie of quarters in the chest by the front door

“taehyung?” you knock on his door before poking your head into the room

he already has a couple posters up on the wall so it seems like he’s settling in pretty nicely

taehyung lets out a quiet breath and rolls his eyes when he hears your voice

you can’t go like 20 minutes without bugging him and he gets that you’re just trying to be friendly and helpful but like

you really need to relax

he’s in the middle of hanging some shirts up in his closet and he forces a smile onto his face before turns to look at you “hey! what’s up?”

“i have a little housewarming gift for you!” you pull a little potted plant out from behind your back before stepping into his room “it’s a baby peace lily!” you hold it up for him to look at “it was actually supposed to go to namjoon but i forgot that i already gave him a little cactus for his desk so… i thought maybe you’d like something to spruce up your room!”

taehyung looks at the tiny plant in your hands

oh

that’s kind of nice of you

it’s not that he doesn’t like you or anything because you do seem nice

you’re just on the opposite end of the spectrum compared to him in terms of personalities (and from what he can tell, social status)

which isN’t a big deal but

eh

he’s just not used to you

your smile falters for a second and you look over at him with wide eyes “noT that your room isn’t alreAdy spruced up but i just thought that maybe-“

“thank you very much, i love it already.” taehyung laughs lightly and walks over to you before plucking it out of your hands “i don’t have any gifts for you because i didn’t think i…” he sets the plant down on the window sill and brushes his fingers over the leaves before glancing at you “-needed to give you anything…”

he smiles sheepishly and scurries over to his bed for his backpack

he unzips it quickly and spills the contents of it out onto his bed

“oh god, don’t worry about it, you definitely didn’t have to get anything for me, i just-“

“ah! here we go.” taehyung grins as he pulls a brand new pack of gum out of the mounTain of loose papers and pens

he stands up before handing it to you with both hands and bowing a little “a fresh pack of gum for my wonderful new roommate. it’s my favourite flavour - strawberry!”

you laugh lightly and take it from him

yeah

you think you’re going to get along really well with kim taehyung

he’s not bad!!!

not bad at all

:~)

so

now that namjoon no longer lives here you’ve taken it upon yourself to become the ‘captain’ of the apartment

this basically means you’re in charge of eveRything because you feel like taehyung isn’t exactly the leader type

the thing is

every morning after you got up namjoon would already have the apartment cleaned up from the night before

the pillows would be fluffed and arranged neatly; the throw blanket folded up and sitting on the sofa chair

the blinds would be pulled up to let the sunlight in (and he usually opens the balcony doors just a crack to let some fresh air in)

the coffee table dusted and free of greasy fingerprints or watermarks

the coffee machine turned on and churning away

the plants out on the balcony are watered (he took the bonsai and left you the daisies)

the dishes on the drying rack put away from the night before

namjoon did a loT now that you think about it

you never really realised how much he did around this place until now

now that.,.,,. he’s not ur roommate anymore.,,..

:-(  

it still huRTS

you thought it would be easy to fall into your new schedule but you fell asleep on the couch in the middle of fluffing the pillows and you ended up taking a 20 minute snooze

you woke up when you rolled over and fell on the floor with a thuMp lol

you rub at your bleary eyes as you shuffle over to the blinds

it’s 7am so the sun is just starting to peek out and say hello

you let out a yawn as you pull the string and the blinds go up slowly

one thing that you’ll always love about living all the way up on the 21st floor is the beautiful view of the city skyline

you see all the highways intertwining with each other and all the tiny cars going here and there

and of course the view of the ocean!!

no wonder namjoon liked to get up so early

the peace and tranquillity of watching the city beginning to wake up is actually pretty pleasant  

you let out a happy sigh before pushing the one of the balcony door handles down and opening it just a little-

“what do you think you’re doing?”

“jEsus-“ you practically jump ten feet into the air when your new roommate makes himself known

you whip around and almost jump again when you realise that taehyung is literally riGht behind you

“how did you get here so quietly??” you mumble before shaking your head and moving to open the other set of blinds so that you can open the other balcony door

you yank the blinds up and taehyung groans and squints at the sudden onslaught of liGht

“when you do it like that it’s sO LOUd”

you clench your jar and turn to face him before putting a hand on your hip

“well, how else am i supposed to open it??”

taehyung shoves you aside and pulls the string again so that the blinds roll back down

he turns to give you a pointed look before sHOVING his hand right in between the shutters and pushing the handle down to open the door “like that.”

wha-

wHAT

WHAT KIND OF MONSTROSITY-

“but- buT then you bend the shutters and- sEE SEE look you dented it!!!!” you push him aside to at least tRy and bend the shutters back into place and scowl to yourself when you see the little dent even after you straightened it out

“so what? if you have to open the balcony doors every morning you should do it like that because a) you don’T have to open the blinds and hurt your eyes so early in the morning, and b) you won’t wake me up from all the ruckus!” taehyung states as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world

“i’ll take your suggestion into consideration next time, thank you” you smile through gritted teeth and follow him to the kitchen

taehyung opens up the fridge and pulls out the carton of apple juice

he unscrews the lid of the apple juice carton and you’re about to ask him if he knows where you put the cups but thEN he starts chuGGing out of it like an uncultured sWINE and you literally fEEL your heart stop

that is so nASTY

he lets out a satisfied ‘ah~’ before putting it back into the fridge

“anyways, now that i’m up,” he slams the fridge door shut and turns to face you with a bright smile “you gonna make breakfast for us or what? because i am starving!”

you know what

you think you’re getting used to sharing a washroom with taehyung

it’s actually not that bad besiDes the fact that he occasionally forgets to put the toilet seat back down but u know what it’s totally fine it’s not a big deal

all you’re saying is that joonie never forgot to put the toilet seat down because he’s very courteous and knows that in the morning when you’re half asleep you’re not going to remember to put the seat down-

“chRist-“ you gasp in shock when your ass basically falls riGHt into the toilet bowl and you reach out next to press a hand against the wall while the other grips at the countertop

you let out a groan and get up before quickly turning to put the seat down

but yes

as you were saying

it’s really not that bad sharing a washroom with taehyung

you flush the toilet before pushing the shower curtain aside to turn the tap on

you hum to yourself and pull your shirt off before tossing it into the hamper

you just have to get used to the fact that taehyung isn’t like namjoon

your brows furrow when you reach under the tap to check the temperature of the water

,.,.why is it still.,,. cold

it doesn’t take this long for the water to get hot

unless

you poke your tongue into your cheek when something crosses your mind

taehyung must’ve used up all the hot water

your grip on the edge of the bathtub tightens until your knuckles turn white

okay!

no problem!

a cold shower will certainly wake you up for sure!!!!  

and you remember namjoon mentioning something about how cold showers help with your metabolism or something like that so maybe you should be thanking taehyung for using up all the hot water like a selfish pRICK-  

“no problem, we’re all good…” you mutter to yourself and pull the little knob on top of the tap so that the water will go to the showerhead-

you yELP when you’re suddenly blasted with icy cold water and you immediately wrap your arms around yourself in a pathetic attempt to keep yourself warm

oh my goD

o-o-o-okay this is going to be the f-f-fastest shower you’ve ever taken in your e-e-entire life because you’re pretty sure that if you spend another f-f-five minutes in here you’re going to get h-h-hypothermia

you shiver as you pick up the bottle of shampoo and-

oh you are k-k-k-kiDDING

you don’t have any shampOO LEFT

you bought this two weeks ago!!!!! how the hell did you use it all up???????

you clench your jaw when it hits you onCe again

k i m

t a e h y u n g

this shampoo is expensive too!!! it’s goat milk shampoo and it makes your hair smell suPer good and feel silky soft  

no wonder he smelled oddly familiar the other night

you jump when you hear knocking on the bathroom door

you push the curtain aside aggressively “what????”

“i need to take a piss!!!! hurry it up in there!!”

you resist the urge to huRL the empty shampoo bottle at the door

anyone who knows you knows that sundays have always been your favourite day of the week

sunday is the perfect day to just relax and unwind from the whole week aND saturday

plus you and namjoon sometimes go to brunch on sunday so that’s another reason why you look forward to sundays so much

you don’t have any plans today which means you have all the time in the world to just chill out and-

“oh. my. god.” your jaw drops in pure shOCK when you walk into the kitchen

it looks like a tornado blew through the kitchen while you were sleeping  

wh-

hoW did this happen????

the kitchen was completely spotless yesterday!!!!!!

you know that because you literally spent like 2 hours cleaning the kitchen last night!!!!!!!!

you were on your hands and knEES scrubbing at the kitchen tiles until each one of them were smooth and polished!!!!

but now??

the garbage bin isn’t closed all the way because it’s literally overflowing with traSH and there’s a banana peel hanging out over the edge

there’s a whole mouNTAIN of dirty dishes and mugs in the sink

you just stepped on a sticky spot and you don’t even want to know what dried up there

and the fridg-

the-

the frIDGE ISN’T CLOSED

you feel a shiver tingle up your spine at the thought of all of your food going to waste because of a warm fridge

you immediately rush over and open the fridge door all the way to see if-

“oh nOnOnOnonoooOooo-“ you reach forward to press the back of your knuckles against the carton of milk and curse to yourself when you realise that it’s literally room temperature

you don’t know how long the fridge has been opened but you know that it’s probably not safe to eat whatever’s in there

everything in the fridge is spoilt as far as you’re concerned

even your overpriced honey-cinnamon greek yogurt that you literally bought two days ago

you’re going to have to dump everything out

what a waste of money!!!!!! now you have to go grocery shopping today and replenish all the food!!!!!!

you should wake tae up and ask him to chip in for the grocery fees

“i can’t get over how comfortable that mattress is…” you turn to look when a sleepy taehyung steps into the kitchen

“what the hell happened??” you exasperate as you grab another garbage bag from the cupboards and shake it open “when i went to bed last night the kitchen was spotless because i cleaned it but i come in this morning and it looks like someone hosted like thrEE frat parties in here all at once-“

“y/l/n, cchhiiiilllll.” taehyung yawns and stretches his limbs out before reaching up to rub at his eyes “i just brought all my dishes and my trash to the kitchen a couple hours after you went to bed, it’s not a big deal.”

oh

okay

well

he’s right

it’s not a big deal

as long as he takes out the trash and washes his own dishes it’s not a big deal

“this is… it’s a lot of trash and a lot of dirty dishes…” you mutter as you take a look around

“it’s only like five days worth of trash and dishes - it’s not that much.” taehyung nudges you aside so that he can look into the fridge “…where’s all the food?”

“in the garbage bag.” you step aside to gesture to the veRy full garbage bag behind you “the fridge was open when i came down and everything in there was warm so i’m throwing everything out.”

“you’re- oh my goD you’re literally wasting so much money right now-“

“most of the things in there were mine anyways so it’s not that big-“

“you threw out that honey-cinnamon yogurt?? i was almost done eating that!!!” taehyung frowns and shoots a glare in your direction

your eyelid twitches

so

he’s been helping himself to your organic vegan yogurt hUH

and he was ‘almost done eating’ it??

you bought it tWo days ago and it’s a huge thing of yogurt which means he must’ve really reALLY been helping himself to it

“hey, so when are you going to go grocery shopping?” tae closes the fridge before nudging you aside again to get to the sink

and at first you think he’s going to get a head start on those dirty dishes but theN-

you feel a wire inside of your brain short circuit almost immEdiately when taehyung uses a wet paper towel to wipe the rim of a dirty cup before turning your coffee machine on and placing the dirty cup under the nozzles

you remind yourself to never accept a cup of coffee from him

it’s totally not a big deal

some people have certain quirks that you’ll never understand but that certainly doesn’t mean that they’re not nice and that you can’t get along with them

“well… i wasn’t going to go until thursday but considering the fact that the fridge is literally empty i guess i’m going today-“

“great, because i have a list of things that i’m gonna need you to pick up for me.” taehyung sighs and plucks an apple out from the fruit bowl

you furrow your brows immediately

“well, you could always come with me-“

“nah, i’m not good at it.” he takes a giAnt bite of his apple

“…you’re not good at- how can you not be good at grocery shopping-?“

“wait, does this mean you threw out the creamer, too?? now i have to drink black coffee?? dude, groSS” taehyung whines and wrinkles his nose at the fresh cup of coffee he just brewed for himself

“…just give me your stupid list.”

if you had a dollar for every time taehyung irritated you, you would honestly be a billionaire at this point

not even a billionaire

you would be a triLLionaire

“would it kill you to do the dishes sometime?” you wipe your damp hands down on the back of your leggings as you step out of the kitchen and into the living room

taehyung is currently lazing on the couch helping himself to a bag of chips while scrolling through his phone

“you know what, it actually would.” taehyung glances up at you “i’m like super duper 100% deathly allergic to dish soap. frankly, i’m offended you even asked.” he pops a chip into his mouth

crunch crunch crunch

you clench your jaw in frustration

for a second you can’t help but wonder what it’d feel like to drive your fist right into the middle of that pretty little face

“ooookay, if you can’t do the dishes, then you can help me take out the trash.”

taehyung sighs and shakes his head “no can do, buddy. i’m also allergic to garbage bags.”

woW what a friCKin coincidence

“…you can do the laundry!” you clap your hands together before placing them on your hips

your foot starts to tap against the floor impatiently when taehyung bring a chip to his mouth slowly and bites it in half

a couple crumbs fall onto his chest and he brushes them onto the floor

he clears his throat  

“detergent falls into the same category as dish soap-“  

“you know what? forget i asked! forget it!” you lauGh and raise your hands in defence before walking away “i give uP! i frickin GIVE UP-“

taehyung jumps when he hears your bedroom door slam shut

he shrugs and pops another chip into his mouth

unsurprisingly

namjoon, jin, and hobi aLL think that you’re not getting along with taehyung

and even though that is a very true statement

unsurprisingly

your natural instinct is to prove them wrong

“we’re getting along just fine, thank you very much for your concern.” you adjust your backpack strap before shaking your head “he’s actually super great, contrary to your guys’ belief. he’s a wonderful roommate! i love taehyung!”

the way you’re speaking almost sounds like you’re trying to convince yourSelf that you love taehyung

and you’ve never really been good at persuading people

namjoon can’t help but roll his eyes

you’re already very stubborn and he haTes dealing with you when you get like this

he doesn’t understand why you can’t just admit that taehyung is a horrible roommate!!!!

“i mean, sure, he’s a little messy, but who isn’t? it’s totally not a big-“

“hey, check it out!” namjoon interrupts your little speech about how amazing taehyung is as a roommate to point over by the vending machines “why don’t you go and say hi to your super duper wonderful angel of a roommate?”

you swallow thickly when you follow namjoon’s line of sight

yep

that’s taehyung alright

you’d recognise that beanie anywhere

frick

it looks like he’s with a group of his friends

you see him pull a plastic baggie of quarters out of his backpack

hey look at that!

that’s nice of him

he’s treating his friends to some snacks

…

wait a second

you feel one of your veins buST open when it hits you

is that.,,.,. is that the lauNDRY MONEY

he’s using the laundry money to pay for snacks and drinks???!??!

“you know, i don’t know if that’s a good idea!” you clear your throat when you feel the boys slowly nudging you towards his direction

hobi literally has his hands pushing against your lower back while namjoon has his fingers wrapped around your wrist

“he looks like he’s in the middle of a very riveting conversation and i wouldn’t want to-“

“kim TAEHYUNG-“ hobi screeches before plopping down on the bench and gesturing for namjoon and seokjin to duck down as well

you panic and you’re about to sit down too but it’s too late

taehyung turns around to understandably find whoever it was who just screamed out his name in the middle of the cafeteria and immediately locks gazes with you

oh god

okay just say hi

“hi taehyung!” you smile brightly and wave at him a liTtle too enthusiastically

jin immediately grabs your hand and pulls it down because your wrist is going to pop off if you wave any harder

now

a normal person would wave back when they’re being waved to

unfortunately for you taehyung is not a normal person

taehyung raises a brow before snorting gently and turning back to his group of friends “as i was saying…“

your jaw drops slightly

what the hell was that

namjoon kisses his teeth and shakes his head

he’s about to hit you with the faTTest ‘I Told You So’ of all time

“it’s a fun little game we play.” you sit down quickly and smooth out your skirt

you can feel your cheeks growing red at the complete mortification of the situation

“you guys wouldn’t understand.” you clear your throat and laugh lightly “he’s so silly!”

namjoon frowns and turns to look at taehyung over his shoulder for a second

you are one of the moSt important people in his life and he hates that you’re being treated like shit

“you still think we believe you when you tell us that you like him?” he sighs while wiping his apple on his shirt

“…just eat your lunch.”

okay

you’re starting to think that you’re incapable of noT thinking about taehyung

you don’t get it!!!

maybe it’s because you have this innate need to be liked and when you realised that taehyung might noT like you that much your brain was like well,.,,. now i’m going to keep thinking about why he doesn’t like us.,,.,.

even when you’re asleep it sounds like your brain won’t stop repeating the words ‘oh my god, taehyung, oh my god, taehyung-‘

“oh my god, tae, fuck yes-“

oh my god

your eyes pop wide open and you stare into the darkness

…

…

…

okay

maybe you just imagined it

that was just your imagination and it definitely wasn’t-

“yes, right there, fuck me with your huge-“

OH

OH NO

oH IT’S NOT YOUR IMAGINATION

THiS IS REAL

“oh god, yes, i’m cumming, you’re gonna make me- ah!”

you feel your entire face burning up as you try to suppress your own screams by flipping over and shoving your face into your pillow

this is a nightmare

a niGHTMARE

also this is a schOOL night so they have no business getting it on when all of you have classes tomorrow

and just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse

you hear the headboard beginning to smack against the wall and- “oh my god, tae-!”

and you nearly start crying

“oh my god, tae...” you whimper to yourself and feel a shiver go up your spine

bLEugh

you yank the covers up over your head and curl up into a ball

you didn’t even know he snuck a girl home!!!!

how did he do that so quietly!!!!!!

when you wake up the next morning you’re not sure if the entire night was some sort of weird fever dream or not

you finally fell asleep at like three in the morning because thaT’s when the screaming and the bed-rocking died down

and then you woke up early because you’re pretty sure taehyung woke his pal up with his head in between her legs (“tae, your tongue feels so-!“)

she’s very communicative which is key in a relationship so hopefully things work out between the two of them!!1!!

you blink down at your bowl of cereal and watch as the now-soggy cheerios float around your spoon

you.,,. don’t have an appetite this morning which is very rare because you’re aLways in the mood to eat

“hi! you must be tae’s roommate!” your spoon clatters against the side of your porcelain bowl when taehyung’s lady friend pops out of nowhere

jesus chRist

she was quiEt

she’s dressed in what appears to be one of taehyung’s tattered t-shirts (the same one he was wearing when he left the apartment yesterday morning) and you allow yourself to stare at the hickies decorating her neck and collarbone as she reaches up to pull the shirt up slightly

you’re tempted to offer her a pair of shorts or something because homegirl’s ass is fully out right now (she’s wearing a g-string which is basically noTHING)

“this is the part where you introduce yourself, y/l/n.” taehyung pops up behind her and raises a brow at you

oh

riGht

you reach up to wipe away the milk that’s driBBling down your chin and you reach out to shake her hand “hi! yes, i’m the roommate… i’m y/n.”

“i’m soo-young, but you can call me joy if you’d like…” she’s a little preoccupied because she keeps looking over your shoulder at tae who’s currently drinking out of the orange juice carton like an animal

joy, huh?

very fitting considering she was screaming of joy last night anD this morning

“well, it’s very nice to meet you, joy.” you push yourself up off the counter before spinning around and promptly grabbing the carton from taehyung’s grubby hands “can i offer you anything? we have cereal, instant oatmeal, frozen waffles and bagels…” you hum and pull a cup from the cupboards before pouring a glass of juice for tae

side note

if you ever need to make a little money in the future maybe you can open up some kind of bed and breakfast thing

taehyung can take care of the bed part and you can do the breakfast part lol

anyways back to it

you hand the clean glass to him with a little glare and he smirks before accepting it and taking a small sip

“of course, i’ll toast the bagel for you… unless you eat frozen bagels?” you joke and put the orange juice back into the fridge before standing back up and leaning against the fridge door “we have cream cheese, oR i make this really good cinnamon butter that i’d be happy to share with you”

joy’s eyes widen before she looks over at taehyung

“uh, i… actually, i was thinking that tae and i could go out for breakfast or somet-“

“i’m gonna go take a shower.” taehyung chirps and hands you the empty glass before moving to head out of the kitchen

“maybe we can take a shower together! save some water?” joy offers shyly and grabs onto taehyung’s wrist

oh

bless her heart

his eyes flicker down to where she’s gripping him and he shakes her off gently “um, we’re trying to conserve hot water so… maybe you should wait til you get back to your place. by the way - would you mind tossing the shirt into the hamper after you change? thanks, sweetheart.” he clicks his tongue and gives her a heaRTy pat on the shoulder  

you mouth a quiet ‘yikes’ to yourself when taehyung leaves the kitchen and joy looks like a puppy who’s just been kicked in the face

her entire face is red and she looks like she’s about to start crying

oof

it’s not greAT of taehyung to brush her off like that but according to your knowledge taehyung is a one night stand kind of guy so.,.,,

you really hope she doesn’t start crying because you never know how to comfort people and ur not about to start now

you clear your throat as joy looks down at the shirt she’s wearing and picks at a loose thread on it  “…how about i smear extra cream cheese on your bagel for you?”  

“bye! thanks for putting the shirt in the hamper…” you offer joy a sheepish smile and watch as she steps into the elevator before you close the front door

so

she didn’t want the bagel even after you toasted it anD put extra cream cheese on it

she definitely wasn’t as joyful as she was when she first came out of tae’s room reeKing of sex

...okay it was funny the first two times but now ur just beating a dead horse

you were about to offer her some clothes for her taxi ride back home because if you were in this situation you would rather be dressed in a hoodie and leggings instead of a tight mini-dress and six inch platform heels at 9 in the morning buT uh

that would give her an excuse to come back and you get the feeling that taehyung doesn’t want her to come back

“taehyung?” you give the bathroom door a couple knocks before taking a step back “i toasted a bagel for joy but she didn’t seem to have an appetite so do you want to split it-“

the bathroom door swiNGs open and you flinch slightly at the onslaught of heat and steam that comes out from it

and then time seems to slow down

taehyung steps out of the washroom with a towel hanging loosely around his hips and a smaller one hanging around his neck

h-holy.,,., holy shIT

smooth, glistening caramel skin with the warm bathroom lights illuminated behind him like a halo

droplets of water practically cascading down the ridges of his broad chest and the faint ridges of his abs and woW that’s a v-line for suRE

you swallow dryly and look up to see taehyung staring right back at you with the coCkiest of smirks on his face

oH

“oh, god, i’m sorry-“ you immediately spin around so that you’re facing the other way and you feel your face starting to heat up  

“it’s all good.” taehyung chuckles lightly “what were you saying about a bagel?”

“i, uh, i was wondering if you wanted to split a bagel because-” you turn to look at him over your shoulder and your eyes widen when you realise he’s standing a loT closer to you as he dries his hair “-b-because joy didn’t seem to want it-“

“yeah, i’m down. lemme put some sweatpants on and i’ll join you in the kitchen.” taehyung puRPosely brushes past you and you catch a whiff of his musky aftershave

you feel your knees grow weak when you see his back muscles flex slightly as he walks down the hall to his bedroom

“head’s up!” he turns around quickly and tosses the smaller towel at you and luCkily your reflexes are fast enough to catch it before it hits your face

you shake yourself out of it quiCkly and pat your hot cheeks

“…wait, are you putting a shirt on too or are you just coming in sweatpants-“

tae’s white towel fLIes out from his room before the door slams shut

“so… joy seems like a nice girl.” you drum your fingers against the side of your mug before taking a sip of coffee (it’s coLD now but you’ll drink it anyways)

“mm.” taehyung murmurs and takes another monster bite of his bagel

“are you… planning to call her or text her or-“

“nah.”

“you shouldn’t have let her weAr your clothes if you’re not going to call her again-“

“she put it on herself and she already knew this was going to be a one time thing” taehyung glances up at you from his phone before giving you an expression that screams ‘duH’ “plus, it’s none of your business.”

you scoff at taehyung and raise a brow “it becomes my business when the vigorous and veRY loud sex happens in my apartment and i’m going to be the one the landlord contacts when we get noise complaints.”

“it’s our apartment”

“my name is on the lease. it’s mine. you’re renting from me.”

taehyung pokes his tongue into his cheek before setting his phone down harshly “what do you want from me, huh? it’s not my fault she was so loud. i can’t help that i’m so good with my-“

“i want you to keep things respectful because you are noT the only occupant of this apartment. keep your sexcapades at a decEnt volume! gag your next friend for all i care!! i was going to sleep in but i had to get up early because someone was moaning up a storm-”

“again, not my fault- it seems to me that someone needs to get laid because you’re waY too uptight and it’s obvious you’re kind of a prude-“

uM

“i am noT a-“ you let out a breath of frustration before shaking your head and turning around “you know what, i’m going to go and get ready to head out!” the mug nearly shatters from the sheer force of you setting it down in the sink

you should’ve said yes to bukjoon

you should’ve!!!!!!

you let out a sigh as you stare blankly out the window

where is bukjoon?

what’s he doing now?

you miss him

you just let him sliP through your fingers

:-(

sure, you would have to had face the fiery wrath of namjoon but the guy’s about as intimidating as a baby penguin so that wouldn’t have been too hard to deal with

speaking of namjoon

you’re looking forward to the lunch that namjoon packed for you today!!  

you managed to calm yourself down a little after your chat with taehyung this morning and now all you can think about is how greAt today is going to be

your outfit is cute

your hair isn’t frizzy

your makeup looks nice and deWy just the way you like it

and one of your lectures got cancelled today so you get to come home a little earlier!

anyways

a classic namjoon lunch (specifically personalised and created for (1) y/n y/ln) includes the following items:

1x smooth peanut butter and strawberry jelly sandwich with no crust

he avoids chunky peanut butter because he knows that you have sensitive gums aND you don’t want peanut bits all up in your teeth after you’re done eating

he used to shape them like hearts but one time you opened your lunch box (yes, namjoon even got you a tin lunch box) in front of hoseok and jin and they immediately started teasing you and asking you what other shapes mama namjoon could do

namjoon wasn’t the least bit embarrassed because he loVes preparing lunch for you but you were traumatised and from that moment on you requested that namjoon simply slice off the crusts and leave it at that

1x baggie of baby carrots and baby cucumbers

1x little pot of hummus

1x homemade chocolate chip cookie that’s always the size of your palm never bigger never smaller

1x carton of either banana/chocolate milk oR apple/orange/pineapple-strawberry juice

you take the box out of the fridge and-

your brows immediately furrow

why,.,.

why does the box feel so light

you give it a little shake

it certainly doesn’t sound like there’s little baggie of baby carrots and cucumbers waiting for you to devour them

your heart sinks to your stomach and your eyes actually begin to water when you open up the box to see that all that’s in there are a couple empty plastic baggies and some breadcrumbs

you swallow thickly

“hey, when are you doing the laundry?” taehyung pops into the kitchen and perks up when he sees you with the lunch box “oh, the bagel wasn’t enough for me and i noticed that the food in that box was the only other decent thing to eat. if i didn’t eat that i would’ve starved to death. by the way, there was a note in the lunch box and it seemed like it was for you but honestly… who’s to say?” taehyung tosses a crumpled up note at you and you catch it before uncrumpling it and-

‘i know you asked for no more heart shaped sandwiches but i bought a new cookie cutter and i just had to use it. see you later today! -joon’

oh

oH

this son of a biTCH

“also, who has the time to shape sandwich bread into-“

“what do you mean ‘who’s to say’???? this was obVIOUSly for me!!!!” you feel your eyes glazing over even moRe purely out of frustration with taehyung and his eyes widen “i’m the only other person who lives in this apartment and if this lunch box doesn’t belong to you then obviously it’s meant for mE you IDIOT”

“jesus, y/l/n, calm down! it’s just food!!” taehyung furrows his brows before scoffing “here, i’ll give you $20 for lunch.” he rummages through his pockets and pulls out a couple of bills

you look at the bills before looking at him and shaking your head

“you’re a dick.” you sniffle as you dump the plastic baggies into the recycling bin

“…what, do you need more lunch money? how much do you eat??”

“that is not the point!”

“okay, $30 for lunch! god, take all my money, why don’t you??”

as time goes on you begin to realise that kim taehyung is truly an asshole

there’s no better word to describe him than an asshole

he’s an inconsiderate, arrogant, uncaring, selfish, complete asshole of a man and you don’t know what you did to deserve this

you really don’t!

he doesn’t care about you at all

in fact

he treats you as if you were his personal maid or something

you’re always picking up after him and you’re always cleaning up his messes anD you’re always escorting his lady friends out of the door the morning after with a to-go cup of coffee and half a bagel

you don’t havE to do all these things for him but you do!!!

you say you’re only continuing to do all these things for taehyung because you’re a nice roommate but according to namjoon you’re a-

“pushover. a complete pushover!” namjoon pauses to glance at you over his shoulder as you trail behind him and his book cart

he hands you a book and you slide it into place

“i am not a pushover!!”

he turns around with a thiCk dictionary in his hands and starts flipping through it

you scoff and place a hand on your hip as you watch him slide his finger down the page

“what are you doin-“

“pushover: noun.” he clears his throat and adjusts his glasses “an opponent who is easy to defeat or a victim who is capable of no effective resistance. someone unable to resist an attraction or appeal; a sucker.”

alright

you see what he’s doing here

you raise a brow and snort “can you use it in a sentence?”  

namjoon claps the dictionary shut before sliding it into the shelf

he leans against the cart and crosses his arms before reaching up to stroke his chin in mock thought

“ah! i’ve got it.” he smiles sweetly at you “y/n is a pushover when it comes to taehyung, and she’ll do anything for him with a snap of his fingers-“

“alRight alright i get it-“

“synonyms for pushover include but are not limited to the following: doormat, weakling, wimp-“

“fine! fine, i’m a little bit of a pushover. it’s not that bad!”  

namjoon turns around and starts wheeling his cart down to the next shelf “a little bit of a pushover? oh, please. what are you doing after you help me out here?”

“going grocery shopping.”

“uh-huh. and what’s on the top of your grocery list? check the list on your phone.”

“i don’t see how this is going to help prove your theory that i’m a pushover-“

“just do it.”

you pull your phone out of your pocket and open your notes app before tapping on the grocery list

the first thing you typed was-

“…’peanut butter cups for taehyung’.” you mutter lowly and scratch the back of your neck

oof

“yep. not honey-cinnamon yogurt, not bagels, not cinnamon toast crunch - peanut butter cups for taehyung. i said it before, and i’ll say it again - you, my friend, are one bIG pushover.”

“pushover. i am not a pushover.” you mutter to yourself as the elevator starts taking you up to your floor

you hug the bag of groceries to your chest tighter to keep it from slipping

“i’m just being a nice person! just because i do things for him whenever he asks me to do things doesn’t mean i’m a pushover. if anything, i’m a… i’m a pullunder! i’m a biG OL pullunder!!!”

ding

you step out of the elevator and make your way down the hallway to the apartment

whatever

you’re not a pushover no matter what namjoon says!!

even though the first thing you looked for was taehyung’s peanut butter cups the moment you stepped into the grocery store does noT mean that you are a pushover  

“hey they didn’t have the peanut butter cups that you like so much but i got these- oH GOD SORRY” you squeak and slam the front door and immediately feel a chunk of your soul leave your body

because you fully just walked in on tae really REALLy getting it on with someone on the couch

how does this keep haPPENING

why does he have to have so much sex!!!!!!!

you fluffed the pillows so nicely this morning

you’re not particularly sure what to do now

are you allowed to go in

are you supposed to wait out here until they’re done

maybe you can go down to the lobby and just wait there

you should probably send tae a text and tell him to just let you know when he’s done

oR maybe you should go in there and tell them to go to the beDroom and finish up because you were really wanting to vacuum the living room today

you jump in surprise when the door swings open violently to reveal a very frustrated looking tae along with a very half-naked tae

he has your throw blanket wrapped loosely around his waist and your cheeks immediately flush

he’s an asshole but it would be inhumane of you to noT check out the faint outline of his six pack

“ever heard of knocking?!” he snarls at you and anY physical attraction to him at this moment immediately fizzles away

you gawk at him

“knock- i live here-!”

you’re about to pick up the grocery bag and shoVe past him to get into the apartment when suddenly he steps aside to let his guest out

“call me later?” she gets up on her tip-toes to give tae a kiss on the cheek and he hums in response

why.., does she look so familiar

your brows knit together as you diG through your brain

omg

what the

you immediately pale when it hits you

rose???????? sweet little rose??? from your history class????? the one with the colour-coded notes and the glittery pens????? sweet little rose from your history class the one with the colour-coded notes and the glittery pens bent over the arm of the couch while tae dRILLS-

“bye y/n! see you monday” rose smiles sweetly at you and muster a smile before stepping aside so that she can make her way to the elevators

you wait for the faint ding of the lifts before you open your mouth to speak but tae beats you to the chase

“i was going to get at least three more orgasms out of her but someone had to come home and ruin the fun” taehyung sighs as he turns to head back in the apartment

“well i’m sorry i live here” you grumble and bend down to pick up the groceries “and three orgasms sounds positively draining”

“of course you would say that, you prude” taehyung tosses the pillows back on the couch

you huff and resist the urge to drop the groceries just so you can kick his ass

“you wanna help me put the groceries in the fridge?” you grunt and kick the door shut behind you

“nah, you can handle it”

“..,.oh, okay! uh, as i was saying, i didn’t find the peanut butter cups that you like so much but i did find these-”

“leave them in my room. i’m gonna take a shower!” tae chirps and slams his bathroom door shut

he opens it up again and pokes his head through “by the way - i’m having a couple people over tonight so it’d be suuuuPer cool if you could like.,.., not be here when that happens.”

“what about if i just stay in my room-“

“thanks, roomie!”

slam

you let out a breath as you stare at the bathroom door before shaking your head disappointedly

how did you get stuck with a prick like that

what did you do in your past life to deserve this?????

you turn to inspect the dishevelled state of the couch

you are going to have to disinfect the entire couch

maybe burn it

maybe just buy a new couch???

you honestly don’t even know how one person can have so much sex with so many different people

you’re all for having a healthy sex life and you fully support someone having multiple sex partners if you’re that kind of person but this is ridiculous

you can’t help but wonder if tae’s had sex on every surface in the apartment

…that explains the handprints on the balcony doors  

“i hate him! he’s driving me crazy and i have to live with him for the next year.” you groan quietly and pinch the bridge of your nose

“so just drive hiM crazy right back”

“how am i supposed to do that?”

“what does he hate the most?”

you purse your lips in thought and make a face

“…not getting laid every weekend?”

namjoon pauses and gives a little shrug

“touché - but, no. he hates you the most. at least, it seems like he hates you the most.”

“gee, thanks-“

“i’m serious! from what i’ve heard - and what i’ve seen - you guys boTh despise each other, so just hang around him 24/7 and you’ll drive hiM equally as crazy!”

“aren’t you the one telling me not to fight fire with fire whenever i get into sticky situations?”

“this is a special situation.” namjoon clears his throat and adjusts his glasses “didn’t you say he was throwing a party?”

“he’s not throwing a party, he’s just hanging out with his friends and they’re all chilling at the apartment. that’s why i’m hanging out with you at the library instead of being in the comfort of my own apartment.” you snort

“oh my god, you dumbass. ‘having a few people over’ almost always translates to ‘i’m throwing a party’. even i know that!” namjoon scowls and reaches over to flick your forehead

you scowl and reach up to rub at the sore spot “taehyung wouldn’t throw a party without consulting me about it first” you huff stubbornly and lean back against the wheely chair

“wow. the midterm exams really made your brain cells disintegrate, didn’t they? you don’t think there’s an inkling of a chance that as you’re sitting here with me, kim taehyung isn’t taking advantage of the fact that he has a very spacey apartment all to himself?”

“you know what, namjoon? i really don’t think so. i think you’re just making an assumption based off perceptions of-“

“there might be people bumping uglies on your bed right now.”  

you immediately pale

“…yeah, so i’ll see you later!” you squeak and bend down to grab your bag

“yep, that’s what i thought.” namjoon snorts and watches as you make a mad dash out of the doors

taehyung is typically a very carefree guy when it comes to throwing parties

he kind of just goes with the flow and doesn’t let anyone harsh his mellow

he doesn’t care if people have sex in his room as long as they keep it clean and fasT and they don’t do it on his bed

he doesn’t care if the cops come and tell him to keep the noise levels down because he knows he has the ability to charm his way out of a charge

but one thing that he definitely cares about?

there’s no way in hell he’s going to let you ruin his party

so imagine his surprise when he walks out from the kitchen to see you asking people to ‘please use the coasters that i’ve provided for you!’

“what the hell are you doing here???” taehyung hisses and grabs you by the arm before pulling you out of the apartment and into the hallway

“what does it look like i’m doing? i’m joining the party!” you grin before pointing to the door “it seems like everyone’s having fun in there!! also, it looks like there are at least twenty people in our apartment and i only have enough juice boxes in the fridge for like six people, which is unfortunate. anyways-“ you’re about to step into the apartment but taehyung reaches out and wraps his fingers around your wrist to hold you back

“you have to leave. i thought you were hanging out with..,,. what’s his name.,., four-eyes tonight?”

“who? namjoon?”

“yeah, four-eyes.”

“namjoon was busy tonight and i didn’t have any work to do so i figured i’d stop by at the obvious party that’s happening in my apartment. what happened to ‘having a couple of friends over’?”

“our apartment.” taehyung corrects you and pulls you back again when you make a move to walk in again

“debatable statement.”

���look, just go and hang out with your friends, alright?” he exasperates “come back in a couple of hours.”

“no!” you frown and let out a huff

“get ouT of here!” he points towards the elevators

“no!!! do you not want me here? is that it??”

taehyung clamps his mouth shut before pursing his lips

you immediately gawk at him

why doesn’t he want you at his party??? you’re not thAt lame

you’re super fun at parties!!!

sure your dance moves aren’t that impressive but you can get jiggy widdit once you get a couple drinks in your system

“why not!!! that’s totally unfair!!!”

you’re aware that you’re acting like a petulant child right now but it’s not fAIR that taehyung doesn’t want you at his party with his friends

you don’t care if he’s ashamed of you even though that’s what it feels like and you can’t help but feel sliGhtly offended

you just want to make sure nobody breaks anything or sets anything on fire

anD you want to make sure that, as namjoon so delicately put it, nobody’s bumping uglies on your bed  

“fine!” taehyung grumbles and gestures towards the door

it seems like you’re not going to take no for an answer so he’ll just have to deal with you staying at the party “you wanna hang out at my party? be my guest. but don’t come running to me like a scared little deer when you realise that you don’t fit in when it comes to these social situations.”

“oh, please.” you snort and push the door open

almost immediately you feel the bass from the music pumping through your veins “i’m going to fit right in with your gang of- hEY feET oFF the coffee table-!“

taehyung lets out a breath and sends out a quick prayer hoPing you won’t be the cause of the death of his party and his social life in general

so

you’ve been to a couple of house parties before with namjoon and hobi and jin

usually you just hang out in the corner of the room with some unidentifiable drink in your hand while you scroll through your phone while hobi and jin are debating over something dumb like ‘do pigeons truly have feelings?’

this is a brand new situation for you

you’ve never been alone at a party

you’re almost always glued to namjoon’s side and you just have to give him a tug on the wrist to let him know you’re ready to get the heCk out of here

and as much as you want to leave you can’T because you made a big deal out of taehyung not wanting you at the party so if you leave now it’s just not going to look good for you

and you don’t know why but it feels like the number of people have increased tenfold because it feels like you’re in a can of sardines right now

of course

you want to prove to taehyung that you can be super cool so you’ve tried to be a little more lax with everyone

but that hasn’t stopped you from scolding somebody who was very happily helping them-self to the peanut butter chocolate ice cream in the freezer

also

you don’t know how you slipped into a party straight out of those cheesy high school movies but here u are

playing seven minutes in heaven

to say the least

you’re.,,. uncomfortable

you didn’t even play this game in high school for crying out loud

also it’s not the 70s anymore why would anyone still be interested in playing seven minutes in heaven

you inspect your nails uninterestedly as taehyung digs his hand through the bowl of names

he had everyone write their names down and put them in the bowl and he foRced you to come play because when he found you you were lecturing somebody on the consequences of mixing alcohol and weed (“do you know how quickly you can become dehydrated with this combination???”)

taehyung feels a sense of relief when he pulls out the slip of paper with your name scribbled down on it

thank god

if he can’t get rid of you for the whole night at least he can get rid of you for seven minutes

“y/n! you’re up.” he smiles brightly when he sees the sheer look of panic wash over your face

good >:-)

taehyung falters when he unfolds the next slip of paper to see that it’s,.,.,. his name that’s scribbled on it

ew!!!!

he doesn’t want to play seven minutes in heaven with u

no offence

“hey, look at that! jungkook, you’re y/n’s partner!” taehyung cheers and shoves the slip of paper back into the bowl

jungkook nods before getting up off the ground and you immediately curse to yourself

it’s not that you don’t want to be paired up with jungkook

it’s just that he’s so intimidatingly preTTy and you get very nervous around pretty people

first impressions are important and you get the feeling that you’re going to find a way to make a fool out of yourself as per usuAL

you don’t know the guy at all

you’ve seen him a couple times around campus throwing a frisbee around with his pals

one time you saw him in line at starbucks but other than that

absolutely nothing

of course you don’t have any time to panic and ask if it’s too late to back out because the next thing you know the two of you get ushered towards the front door before getting shoved riGht into the closet

it looks like taehyung cleaned out the closet specifically for this game

you’ll have to ask him later where he shoved everything

you clear your throat and look up at the flickering light in the closet before looking over at jungkook who is aLso avoiding your gaze

“i’m y/n, by the way.”

wait

taehyung already told him that

oof

this is already going downhill and it’s barely been ten seconds

“i’m jungkook.” he smiles politely and sticks his hand out awkwardly for you to shake

it’s awfully cozy in here

he’s about the length of your elbow to the tip of your middle finger away from you which seemS like an appropriate distance away but when ur shoved into a tiny closet it’s very, very close

“you’re taehyung’s roommate, right?”

“yep! and you’re taehyung’s… friend?”

“eh, i guess so. we’re just part of the same fraternity but i don’t actually know him too well.” jungkook shrugs “we lived together last year but i kinda kept to myself.”

“oh yeah! i remember him mentioning something about living with like four other guys…”

“it gets messy” he laughs lightly “do you get along with him?”

“well, we have our good days, i suppose. he uses my shampoo-“

“no way, he used to use my shampoo too!!!!”

you immediately snort and roll your eyes playfully “i just don’t get why he can’t go out and get his own damn bottle!”

“exactly!!!!!” jungkook gasps in exciTement because he’s finally being given a chance to rant about taehyung

he accidentally raMs his elbow into the wall and lets out a groan before crumpling over

oh oUCH

“are you okay????” you immediately burst into giggles and reach over to give the top of his head a gentle pat

“whyYyYY are you laughing at me??” he whines and rubs at his sore elbow

it’s weird

you thought jungkook was just a carbon copy of taehyung

and for the first time ever

you’re pretty happy that you were mistaken

seven minutes goes by fAr too quickly for your liking because the next thing you know taehyung’s banging on the closet door and telling you guys to ‘get your asses out here’

“i’m sorry about... you know, not actually following the rules of seven minutes in heaven” you smile sheepishly and scratch the back of your neck

“technically, the players get to spent seven minutes doing whatever they want with each other and i just wanted to get to know you a little better, so i think we played the game right.” jungkook teases lightly

he reaches out for the doorknob but pauses and turns to look at you again “by the way, i… would you maybe want to hang out sometime? grab some coffee or something?”

your brows raise in surprise

oh

your cheeks warm immediately and you let out a soft chuckle “i, uh, yeah! i would love to grab some coffee with you sometime. maybe after we get out of this closet i can give you my number?”

jungkook beams at you and nods happily “yeah, that’d be-“

all of a sudden the closet door swings open and you instinctively take a step away from jungkook when you see taehyung standing there looking less than happy

“the game is called seven minutes in heaven, not teN minutes in heaven.” he steps aside to let the two of you out and you can’t help but roll your eyes

for someone who accused you of being a buzzkill muLtiple times he’s certainly doing a good job at being one right now

taehyung can’t help but narrow his eyes a little when he notices you and jungkook exchanging shy glances as you guys sit back down in the circle

...hm

“i’m baaaack!” your keys jingle as you shove them back into your backpack

you’re genuinely surprised that you didn’t walk in on tae fucking the lights out of someone on the couch

you were expecting to see a pair of someone’s boobs or a flash of his dick but it’s a pleasant feeling to be able to walk into your own apartment and not want to completely bleach your eyeballs

“you would not believe how packed the bus was because it’s tuesday and you wouldn’t think that the bus would be super jammed on a tuesday night but obviously-“

“i’m going to need you to shut up before i throw my books at you” taehyung raises his pencil in your direction but keeps his eyes glued on his laptop

he’s sitting crosslegged on the ground and he’s surrounded by loose papers and open books

his laptop is on the coffee table and it looks like he had a whole bag of m&ms for dinner which cannOT be good for you

he has the tv turned on but the volume’s really low

“wow, alright mr. grumpy…” you raise your hands in defence before bending down to untie your laces “what are you doing?”

“none of your business.” taehyung mutters in response and lets out a huff of frustration

side note

you’ve never seen him wear these rectangular framed glasses before

his hair is frizzy and slightly damp from a shower most likely

he’s in a white and blue stripey pyjama set

you’ve never seen him look so.,,.., dare you say it,.,,.. so boyfriend material-y before

so warm n snuggly n cozy

it really sucks

the fact that he looks like that and then once he opens his mouth all the attraction just fadEs away in a millisecond

god really has it out for you doesn’t He

“fine, sorry i asked…” you can’t help but feel a little dejected every time taehyung shuts you down like that

you’re just being a nice person!!

taehyung falters and pokes his tongue into his cheek when he glances at you and sees you hanging your jacket up on the coat rack quietly

ur just minding your own business

,.,.ok he feels a little bad for being rude to u all the time

he doesn’t know why he’s so mean to you

you guys have been roommates for a couple of months already and every time he’s mean to you you never fight back

in fact you usually just flash him a smile and then wander off and leave him alone

“i’m just…” taehyung sighs and leans back against the bottom of the couch “i’m taking this dumb art history class and i have a presentation in a couple of days that’s worth 25% of my final grade that i haven’t worked on yet.”

you narrow your eyes at him “that… i can’t feel bad for you because you did that to yourself. you should’ve started earlier!”

jesuS

okay now he knows why he’s so mean to you all the time

it’s because you’re a bratty little know-it-all

taehyung shoots a glare in your direction and you shrug

well it’s truE

“would it kill you to stop being such a smartass all the time? you always think that you’re right and that everyone else is wrong-”

“because most of the time i am right and everyone else is wrong.”

“jesus- you know what, whatever. just leave me alone, y/l/n.” taehyung grumbles and brings his attention back to his laptop

“what are you doing?” taehyung furrows his brows in confusion when you suddenly plop yourself down across from him and pull your laptop out of your backpack

“i’m going to help you, that’s what i’m doing.”

“do you even know anything about mesopotamian art?”

“nope” you pop the ‘p’ before raising a brow “but i’m going to research the heCk out of it and we’re going to make a bombass presentation and you, good sir, are going to ace it.”

“i don’t get it. why are you helping me?” taehyung narrows his eyes at you and you give him a warm smile in response

“because this is me being nice. don’t question it. now share your google presentation with me!”

believe it or not

you actually think that making presentations are pretty fun

you get to choose the pretty fonts and the colourful backgrounds and if you’re really wanting to spice things up you can always add in those funky transitions

of course taehyung has a certain minimalistic aesthetic to his slides so it probably wouldn’t be a good idea to infect it with your multicoloured block letters

the two of you have been working for about an hour and a half and you have to say it’s been a pretty productive hour and a half

taehyung said that his presentation has to be 10 minutes long which really isn’t thaT long if you think about it but the difficult part about it is that you have to jam as mUch relevant information as possible into it

thankfully he already did some research so you guys didn’t have to start completely from scratch

of course you chipped in and did some research on your own as well that you thought would contribute greatly to the overall quality of his presentation

but picking and choosing what to cut out and what to put in is surprisingly taking a lot more time than you thought it would

it’s been relatively silent

all that can be heard is the tv is playing softly in the background along with your guys’ fingers on tapping away at the keyboard and the occasional flip of a page or scribble of a pencil

your eyes flicker over to taehyung over the top of your laptop

he has his necklace trapped in between his teeth as his fingers fly across the keyboard

there’s a divot in between his brows and for a brief second you can’t help but think that his concentrating face is actually pretty cute

wait wat

u didn’t say that

taehyung glances up at you and you quickly look back down at your laptop screen

a soft smile twitches at the corner of his mouth

you’re cute when you’re not running your mouth and constantly telling him what to do  

you took a quick break earlier to change out of your clothes so now you’re in a pair of shorts and a comfy looking sweatshirt

also you had to pull out your reading glasses because it felt like your contacts were starting to dry out anD your eyes were starting to get fuzzy from staring at the screen for so long

and taehyung didn’t think he had a thing for girls with glasses but.,,.,. he might have a thing for girls with glasses

wait wat

he didn’t say that

you’re chewing on the back of your pen as you scroll through an article when all of a sudden your tummy lets out a little grumble

it makes sense considering the fact you haven’t eaten in like nine hours

“i’m going to order some takeout for us because a bag of m&ms does not equate a proper meal” you get up off the ground and stretch your sore limbs out before heading towards the kitchen

taehyung glances up at you briefly (your butt looks cute in those shorts) before shaking his head “nah, i’m good. you can go ahead and order-“

“orange chicken, broccoli beef and vegetable chow mein without celery and with extra bell peppers, right?” you poke your head out from the kitchen with your phone sandwiched in between your ear and your shoulder

“wha- um, yeah. how did you know-“

“great! also, could i get an extra order of egg rolls-“

huh

you know his order by heart which is funny because he happens to know that your usual order is sweet and sour pork, honey-walnut shrimp, and fried rice with extra green onions

wait what

taehyung brows knit together in confusion

how’d he know that

what the heCk

from: jungkook - ok what about this one: if i could rearrange the alphabet i’d put ‘u’ and ‘i’ together

to: jungkook - bOo i give that one 2/10 points

from: jungkook - your standards are too high, woman!!!!!! what are u doing now?

to: jungkook - eating dinner. guess what’s on the menu?

from: jungkook - what’s on the menu

to: jungkook - me-n-u

from: jungkook - omg ur so lame u literally just stoLE my pickup line i’m giving you -2/10 points

you giggle softly as you type in your response

you and jungkook have been texting back and forth since taehyung’s party a couple of weeks ago

he’s super sweet anD super funny and he just has that boyish charm about him that makes you squeAL if you think about it for too long

all you know is that ur kinda sorta maybe wrapped around his pinky and you’ve only gone out for coffee with him once

he pulled your chair out for you!!! you guys split a slice of carrot cake!!! he even feD you a bite!!!! and after coffee you guys just wandered around campus and it was just super nice talking to him!!! he draped his jacket around your shoulders to keep you warm!!! you like him a lot and he makes your heart go boom-boom!!!

“hey - for one of your pieces of shrimp, i bet you that i can catapult one of my pieces of chicken right into your mouth.” you look up from your phone to see taehyung grinning at you

he wiggles his brows and you look down at your little dish of shrimp

you guys are taking a dinner break and you thought the entire dinner would go by with nO words being exchanged between you two but this is a good sign because taehyung initiated a conversation

you should take advantage of this!!! this is your winDow of oppoRtunity!!!!!

you set your phone down and raise a brow “you drive a hard bargain, kim.” you sit back a little and open your mouth expectantly and tae rubs his hands together excitedly  

he places a piece of chicken on the spoon and clears his throat

and…

he pokes his tongue out in concentration and flicks his wrist forward quickly

your eyes widen in excitement when it actually lands in your mouth and you make sure to chew and swallow before sticking your arms up in the air in viCtory “it worKed!!!!! i guess that means you get one of my shrimps - which i will aLso be catapulting into your mouth”

you place the overly saucy piece of shrimp on your spoon before quickly flicking it anD-

“oh shiT” you laugh when it hits tae’s forehead before plopping down onto the table

���you did that on purpose!” he groans playfully and reaches up to wipe the sauce off his forehead with a napkin

“i did not!!! i just have terrible aim!!!”

taehyung pops the shrimp into his mouth and hums happily

this is definitely a muCh better dinner than a bag of m&ms

“aw, they only gave us one fortune cookie!” you push your bottom lip out in a pout as you rummage through the plastic bag in hopes of finding another fortune cookie “it looks like we’re going to have to split this one…”

you unwrap the cookie before holding it out for tae

he grips the other side and-

snap

the fortune is stuck in taehyung’s portion of the cookie and his eyes lighT up in excitement

“it’s probably going to say something stupid like how you have to look inside yourself to find the true meaning of life” he snorts and pulls the slip of paper out

“either that or something like ‘you’re going to die in 24 hours’” you raise a brow and inspect your half of the cookie before popping it into your mouth

oW

that cut into your gums a little bit

:-(

tae unfolds it and gives it a quick read

‘☺ the love of your life is right in front of your eyes ☺’

his dark brows knit together once he reads it and his eyes slowly trail up from the slip of paper to right across from him to where you’re sitting

oh boy

“well?” you swallow your bite and reach up to wipe your mouth with the back of your hand “what does it say?”

tae doesn’t know why he’s nervous to tell you what it says

his eyes widen in panic when you reach out to take it from him and he quickly smacks your hand away

“ow!!!!” you scowl and cradle your hand “what was that for??”

“it’s my fortune!! if you read it… it won’t come true!!”

“that’s literally not how it works-“

“dinner break is over! let’s get back to work” tae tucks the fortune into his breast pocket before popping the cookie into his mouth and dusting his hands off

“fine, you weirdo.” you roll your eyes playfully as you start cleaning up the empty takeout boxes

‘the love of your life is right in front of your eyes’

he watches as you hum to yourself and tie the straps of the flimsy plastic bag together before getting up to toss it away

tae snorts quietly and shakes his head

love of my life my aSS

it’s not a big deal

fortune cookies are stupid anyways

“-and with that being said, it is clear that the geographic division of the area is reflected in the history of its cultural development from the earliest civilisations.” you mouth the words along with tae as he finishes up his presentation

you immediately start applauding after his concluding statement and tae smiles brightly

“yes!!!!! that was so good!!!” you laugh lightly when tae bows and blows kisses into the audience (aka just you)

you let out a yawn before reaching up to rub at your bleary eyes “now that we’re done with your presentation we should probably get some shut-eye.” you let out anoTher yawn as you check the time on your laptop

jeez louiSe

it’s 5:14am

the two of you have to get up at 8 and you’re definitely not looking forward to that

“goodnight, tae!” you turn to glance at tae over your shoulder as you step out of the washroom

the two of you decided to do your nighttime routine together just to save some time

you pause when you get to your bedroom and furrow your brows “or… good morning? good-might? goodnighting?”

“you’re delirious. go to bed.” tae snorts and waves you off as he turns off the bathroom light “thanks again, y/n”

“anytime, tae”

your door closes and the light flickers off

taehyung stares at your bedroom door for a couple for seconds

“you’re not so bad, y/l/n.” he mutters to himself with a smile before walking into his bedroom and closing the door “you’re not bad at all.”

oooOOh boy

you’ve never felt so drained in your entire life

you let out a yawn as you make your way to the kitchen before rubbing at your sore jaw with a scowl

that was a big yawn and you were [this] close to getting lockjaw

you hit your snooze button a couple of times this morning  

you’re exhAusted from staying up all night helping tae with his presentation but you need to get some food in your system before you head out for the day

your nose twitches when you smell,,…,. burning.,.,,. why,,.., why do you smell burning.,,..,

your heart immediately starts to race as you quicken your pace

did you leave something in the oven last night??

impossible

you didn’t usE the oven last night

maybe taehyung left something on???

jEsus of course he left something on

he’s going to set this place on fire and-

“hey, i was wondering when you were going to get up! you’re usually halfway through a bowl of cereal by this time.”

needless to say

you are nothing short of shOCKed when you see tae with a tea towel slung over his shoulder padding around the kitchen as if this was a normal thing for him

what is going on

he pulls a stool out for you and nudges you over so that you take a seat

oh god

is this what a stroke feels like?

are you.,., literally having a stroke right now?

“sorry about the burning smell. i guess the crumbs in the toaster were starting to clog up the thing so when i popped your bagel into it and turned it on all the crumbs starting getting burnt… but your bagel made it out alive!” taehyung smiles and sets your bagel down in front of you

one side is smeared with cream cheese and the other is smeared with your homemade cinnamon butter

just the way you like it

huh

“coffee?”

“what?” you blink owlishly at taehyung and he raises the coffee pot in his hand

“…coffee? one cream two sugars, right?”

“right, yeah. uh, yes please. thank you.” you smile meekly and taehyung nods before pouring some coffee into your mug

you lean over a little to glance at the sink

all the dishes are drying on the drying rack

there are no dirty dishes in the sink

the counters are spotless and polished

and you’re pretty sure you can smell some floral air freshener in here

what

is

going

ON

“here you go-“ taehyung hands you your mug before pointing to the fridge “also, i, um, packed lunch for you today-“

oH

you figured it out

you know why he’s being so nice to you

you’re a genius!!!!

“-to make up for that one time i ate it and you almost cried over it-“

“what did you break?” you interrupt taehyung and he raises a brow at your accusatory tone

“what are you talking about?”

“what… did you break? did you damage something? is that why you’re being so nice? so that later on when you tell me you like kicked a hole through your wall or something i won’t be able to get mad at you because you made breakfast for me anD packed lunch for me…”

“i didn’t break anything, y/n. calm down.” taehyung snorts and shakes his head as he takes a bite of his own bagel

he swallows his bite

“i just wanted to say thank you for helping me yesterday.” he shrugs and walks over to take a seat on the stool next to you

you swiVel around so that you can face him

taehyung does the same

since you two are sitting so close together that means his knee is sandwiched in between yours

“you wanted to thank me… that’s it?”

“mhm”

“there’s no ulterior motive?”

he purses his lips and shakes his head “not that i can think of.”

“…so you’re not going to throw some sneaky party or anything-“

“y/n, this is me trying to be nice. don’t question it.” taehyung reaches over to pinch your cheek before giving your knee a gentle pat “now, c’mon! eat up!”

tae knew that the presentation was coming up soon

but now that he’s literally about to present it he feels like time went by waY too quickly

he doesn’t know if he’s been so nervous in his entire life

he knows it’s just a 10 minute presentation but he hates, absolutely dreAds giving presentations

especially solo presentations!!! in front of like 200+ people!!!!!

goD

he needs to stress-chew on some gum

nothing like good ol strawberry flavoured gum to calm his nerves

he unzips his backpack and shoves his arm into it

his brows knit together in confusion when his fingers brush over a foreign object in his backpack

he pulls out what appears to be a little stack of flashcards held together with a ribbon

there’s a little sticky note on the top of the stack and tae flips it upside right to read it

tae: these might come in handy! good luck today - i know you can do it. - y/n ☺

oh

you made presentation flashcards for him

when did you even put these in his bag?

when did you find time to make these for him??

taehyung pulls the ribbon off and flicks through the flashcards briefly

wow

you wrote down every single one of the important points down on the cards

you really did that for him

wow

“kim taehyung?”

taehyung swallows thickly when he hears his name being called

he clears his throat after making his way to the front of the room

his lips pull up into a friendly smile and he stares into the ocean of people “today, i’m going to be talking about the history of mesopotamian art in relation to its cultural development…”

it’s weird

the one thing calming him down isn’t the strawberry gum

it’s the thought of you

so

the presentation is actually going fairly well

tae nearly dropped his flashcards at one point but thank god he didn’t because that would have been a nightmare to have to reorganise

but yes

so far so good

he’s actually about to wrap up the presentation which is giving him a great sense of relief because he’s pretty sure he’s going to have a nervous breakdown if he stands up here for any longer than 10 minutes

“-and with that being said-“ taehyung freezes when he suddenly sees you sitting all the way in the back of the lecture hall

what the heck

what are you doing here?

he haTes that he feels his heart skip a beat when you give him a little wave and a thumbs up

he clears his throat and offers the prof a sheepish smile before continuing on and tapping his spacebar to get to the final slide “-uh, it is clear that the geographic division of the area is reflected in the history of its cultural development from the earliest civilisations. thank you.”

he lets out a breath of relief when the audience breaks into scattered applause

and unsurprisingly you stand up and bounce up and down excitedly aND clap the moSt enthusiastically before giving a little ‘woohoo!!!!!’

god

you are such a dork

…he loves it

the first thing taehyung sees when he leaves the lecture hall is your smiling face

he’s about to ask you what the heCk you’re doing here but he doesn’t get a chance to because-

“hey, you! you did so well!!!!” you squeal excitedly and pull tae down for a quick congratulatory hug

his eyes widen in surprise but he finds himself hugging you back almost instinctively

he wraps an arm around your waist tightly and can’t help but wonder why his first instinct isn’T to shove you away and tell you to cut it out

“i… literally couldn’t have done it without you but- what are you even doing here? don’t you have class right now?”

“i would not miss your mesopotamian art history presentation for the world, my friend. of course i had to come and support you!” you give his arm a playful punch before checking the time on your watch “i actually have… three minutes to get to my next class so i have to go but i’ll see you at home?”

“yeah, yeah. i’ll… see you at home.”

taehyung smiles softly when he sees your backpack bouncing up and down from your frantic movements as you scurry towards the exit

that was really nice of you actually

you didn’t have to come and watch him do his presentation but you did

yeah

that was very nice of you

he blinks twice

son of a bitch

it’s not.,.. possible

taehyung stares blankly ahead before furrowing his brows and reaching up to scratch the back of his neck

there’s no way he’s harbouring feelings for you

gross!!!!!!

you’re y/n!!!!

you’re his dorKy ass roommate who he would never hang out with if it weren’t for the fact that you guys lived together

you’re y/n

you’re y/n who snorts when you laugh too hard at one of his jokes

you’re y/n whose idea of fun is watching a nature documentary about dolphins or sitting on the couch doing crossword puzzles

you’re y/n who’s always asking him if he wants a snack or one of your juice boxes or if he needs any help with his work

you’re y/n who uses a wooden spoon as a guitar as you bounce around the kitchen jamming out suPer hard while making dinner (he’s never going to let you live that one down)

you’re y/n who stayed up til 5 in the morning helping him with his presentation even thought you literally didn’t need to do that

you’re y/n and taehyung is 99.9% sure that he likes you much more than a roommate or a friend should

he swallows thickly

o god

he likes you

“…seriously?!” taehyung groans loudly and smiles sheepishly when the people around him give him weird looks

oops

and so

as seconds turn into minutes and minutes turn into hours and hours turn into days and days turn into weeks

you find that you become a lot closer to tae than you thought was possible

it turns out that when he’s not being a complete dick he’s actually a very sweet and caring guy

he always holds the door open for you when you guys come home together (his classes end earlier than yours so he just waits til you get off class so you guys can catch the bus together)

he’s always offering to make you a cup of coffee or a little fruit salad whenever you’re busy studying because he knows you get peckish when you’re working hard

not to mention

you can’t remember the last time you had to toast an extra bagel for one of his special friends

you can’t remember the last time you nagged him to take the trash out or wash the dishes or do the laundry

you can’t remember the last time he did something that irritated the heck out of you

most of the things that he does nowadays make you smile and laugh and just feel all waRm and cozy inside

see?

it just took a little bit of time but you knew that eventuaLLy you guys would get along

you truly are living your best life

taehyung doesn’t know how you managed to convince him to watch another one of your dumb nature documentaries (it miGht have something to do with the fact that he definitely has a super big crush on you) but to be honest it’s really not as boring as he thought it would be

“wait, i don’t get it.” tae shakes his head before glancing at you for a brief second “seahorses are monogamous? are there seahorse weddings?? can seahorses get married????”  

“mm, yeah” you hum absentmindedly before popping a kernel of popcorn into your mouth

“for real???”

you reach over to pat tae’s hand gently as a gentle reminder to shut the fuck up or i’ll cut u and it looks like you’re waY too wrapped up in the nature doc because you don’t pull your hand away

“seahorses mate for life, and when they travel, they hold each others’ tails…” tae’s eyes flicker down to your hand resting on top of his and he lets out a little sigh

he kind of wants to ʰᵒˡᵈ ʸᵒᵘʳ ʰᵃⁿᵈ

he turns to look at you again and feels his heart skip a beat

you’re not even doing anything but you’re still so cute

he honestly doesn’t know what he’s going to do because this is truly the first time he’s ever felt this way towards someone BUT mushy feelings are suPer duper lame so there’s that

he turns to look back at the tv

“do you think i would win in a fight against a beaver? i think i could take a beaver any day.” tae mutters through a mouthful of popcorn

he keeps his eyes glued on the screen but nudges your side with his elbow “hey, i asked you a question-“ all of a sudden you’re slumping over and your head drops onto his shoulder

he freezes almost immediately and turns slowly to look down at you

huh

you fell asleep

what time is it?

you guys have watched like four episodes of this docuseries so he can assume that it’s already pretty late

he puts the bowl of popcorn down before glancing around for his phone

he curses quietly when he sees that it’s on the coffee table but it’s just out of reach

you know when your dog or cat falls asleep on your lap

taehyung thinks that this is kind of like that

except instead of his cute dog it’s his cute roommate and he doesn’t have the heart to wake you up because you look pretty comfortable

he’ll just let you snooze for a little while longer and then he’ll wake you up so that the two of you can go to your rooms

no biggie!

he lets out a little yawn

it wouldn’t kill him to take a little snooze as well riGht

n…o….. b…i…g….g…i…e….

tae’s brows furrow in discomfort when he tries to flip over onto his other side

why,,.,. can’t he move

he sniffles and reaches up to rub at his nose before wrapping his arm back around his pillow

hm

why does his pillow feel so firm all of a sudden

tae gives his pillow a gentle squeeze

it’s like soft and firm at the same time

he peels one eye open just to check-

oh jESUS

he jolts in surprise when he realises that he’s not in his room and he’s not cuddling up to his pillow

he’s still on the couch with you and you guys are definitely snuggled up together and he was definitely groping your ass three seconds ago

his thigh is tucked in between your legs

you’re using his bicep as a pillow which explains why he couldn’t move his arm earlier

he’s sure that his heart is going to bust out of his chest because

well

hi there

u look very cute when you’re asleep

your cheeks are warm n rosy (presumably from being wrapped up in tae’s arms all night) and your hair is a little mussed up

and your face is smooshed against his bicep which is adorable

the tip of his nose bumps against yours and he feels his cheeks flush red at how close the two of you are

he’d only have to move like an inch to kiss u

you grumble something under your breath as you stir and suddenly you’re changing positions and turning around so that your back is pressed against tae’s chest

tae keeps his free arm lifted so that he doesn’t accidentally grope you again or anything lol

to his complete and uTter surprise

you reach up and grab tae’s arm before wrapping it around yourself and tae feels his heart beating a mile a minute

you’re so soft and warm and you smell so sweet and it wouldn’t hurt to just.,., doze here with you for a little while longer

taehyung can’t help but nuzzle into the back of your neck before pulling you closer and wrapping his arm tighter around you

yeah

just a little while longer

it’s about an hour later when you peel open your cruSty eyes

you let out a soft yawn and wince at the light streaming in through the blinds

huh

you must’ve fallen asleep on the couch yesterday night

also

…why does your blanket feel like an arm

you glance down and your eyes widen in surprise when you see what is inDeed an arm wrapped tightly around your waist

oh my god

you’re cuddling with taehyung

oH mYFHAJKF

“tae-“ you tap his arm and wiggle around in his grip-

what the

what is that?

there’s something hard pressing into your bum

it kind of feels like-

oH

OH MY GOD

“oh my goD tae-“ you shove his arm away before rolling off the couch with a thuMp and tae shoOts up from the couch from all the commotion

“wha- what’S happening what’s happening-“ his voice is significantly deeper and raspier considering he was sleeping very peacefully like a second ago but you can barely think about that because-

“gO take care of your thING you freAK-“

tae immediately looks down and-

oH

his face flushes bright red and he grabs a pillow to cover himself

“i can’t HELP IT oh my god you’re such a pruDE-“

to say the least

this has been a very chaotic start to the morning

“cinnamon toast crunch…” you mutter to yourself as you look over the grocery list in your hands

usually you take care of the groceries and tae just pays you back for half of them but for some reason he insisted on tagging along with you today

but you’re starting to regret your decision of letting him come with you because going grocery shopping with tae is like going grocery shopping with a five year old

“y/n, check it out! a two for one deal on m&m’s!!!!!” you look over your shoulder to see tae looking vEry excited at being in the candy aisle

you let out a sigh and shake your head before pointing to the piece of paper in your hand

“we don’t need m&m’s, it’s not on the grocery list that i meticulously curated-“

“head’s up!” you immediately duck when tae suddenly huRLS two bags of m&ms over your head and right into the cart

“tae! you could’ve hit me!!!!”

“but i didn’t”

“but you couLD have”

“…but i didn’t!” he chirps and nudges you aside a little so that the both of you can push the cart

tae’s eyes flicker down to where you’re both gripping the handlebar and he moves his hand a little closer so that his pinky is pressed right up against yours

and surprisingly enough

you don’t flinch or move your hand

tae turns his head to hide the giddy smile on his face

heehee

“you’re going to get us kicked out of the store if you keep goofing around like that, you know”

“they can’t kick us out - who else is going to buy their insanely overpriced organic vegan honey-cinnamon yogurt?” tae picks the tub of yogurt up and inspects it before putting it back down “i don’t know who else would be crazy enough to spend $18 on yogurt.”

“you’re the one who eats half a tub in a sitting so it looks like i’m not the only crazy one here.” your eyes scan over the shelves and they light up when you spot your favourite cereal calling out your name

“why can’t we get froot loops instead?” tae purses his lips as you chuck the box into the cart

“because froot loops are gross and they’re full of artificial flavours and weird preservatives-”

“cinnamon toast crunch is like a having a bowl of diabetes in the morning-“

“there’s 2.1 grams of fibre in it sO-“

“but froot loops are multicoloured!!!!!”

it’s funny

the two of you are bickering like a married couple and tae can’t help but feel some sort of odd satisfaction from that

>:-)

“tae, did you get the orange juice with pulp or without pulp??” you glance over your shoulder to see tae at the ice cream freezers

“without pulp!”

you hear the faint slam of the freezer door but you don’t think too much about it as you unzip your wallet to find your rewards card

you turn to look at him again

“and are the bagels-“

“yes, i got one bag of cinnamon-raisin and one bag of plain bagels, don’t worry-“

“here you go-“ you hand your rewards card over to the cashier with a smile and she scans it before handing it back to you

you continue to place the groceries onto the conveyer belt but you look up for a second when you notice the lady stopped scanning your things

she pauses for a moment as her eyes flicker from you to tae (who is coming back with a tub of ice cream behind his back)

you’re about to ask her if your card didn’t work or something but then-

“you two make a very cute couple.” she murmurs discreetly and your entire face immediately flames up at the comment

oh

oH

“who, me and him?“ you laugh lightly and shake your head “trust me, we’re-“ your eyes widen in surprise when taheyung’s arms suddenly snake around your waist from behind “what are you-“

“thank you very much, i think we make a cute couple too.” he presses his cheek against yours before not so subtly sliding a pint of ice cream onto the conveyer belt “but let me tell you, susan… if i was a couple years older, i think we’d make a much cuter couple.”

you resist the urge to roll your eyes because there’s no way someone would fall for a line as cheesy as that

susan immediately bursts into giggles “oh, you’re awful!”

wow

apparently you were very wrong about that

“he really is” you snort and nudge your elbow into his stomach to try and get him to release you but he only tightens his grip around you “also, put the ice cream back because we’re already way over our budget-“

“aw, c’mon, baby… won’t you buy a tub of ice cream for your darling boyfriend?” tae pouts and nudges his nose into your reddening cheek

you literally don’T know why he’s doing this and you also don’t know why you haven’t pushed him away and knocked him over the head for acting all crazy

“cut it out, you weirdo. put the ice cream back-“

“you know what? the ice cream is on me. you two are just too adorable!” susan swipes the tub over the scanner before sliding it into the bag and you and tae exchange glances

huh

he was only acting all cutesy to try to convince you to buy the ice cream but it looks like it worked on susan instead

well

either way he’s happy!!

tae pinches your side to get your attention

“you think if we make out in front of her she’ll give us the groceries for free?”

,.,..oh my god

“i’m really glad you decided to help me out with folding the laundry because-“

“check it out - i’m a fruit fly!!”

you look over to see that tae has one of your bras strapped around his head so that the cups are facing upwards and your cheeks immediately grow pink when you see him bouncing around the living room like a big ol dummy

“jesus- tae, nO” you groan and toss the shirt you’re in the middle of folding aside before holding your hand out “give it to me!!”

the two of you are standing at opposite ends of the couch and you can practically hear the cowboy showdown music in your head

“you’re going to have to rip it away from my cold… dead… bODY-“ taehyung breaks into a sprint and you immediately do the same

when he sprints past the laundry basket full of freshly dried undergarments he digs his grubbY hand into it and pulls out a-

“hey, you should wear something like this around the apartment more often.” tae gawks at the verY thin vERY lacy burgundy thong hanging around his finger “instead of those dumb fruit panties-“

“get over here so i can kiCK your ASS-“

he starts cackling when you begin to chase him around the room again only this time you’re hurling balled up socks at his head  

“and… checkmate.” taehyung knocks namjoon’s chess piece out of the way before picking it up and placing it on his side of the table

namjoon furrows his brows and tilts his head as he looks down at the chessboard

what in the world

“that- you can’t do that. your move didn’t make any sense.”

tae purses his lips and looks down at the board

“…yeah, i don’t actually know how to play chess.” taehyung chirps “i don’t even know what checkmate means”

namjoon snorts

“okay!” tae turns around and leans against the front counter when you return clutching a book to your chest “i finally found the book that i was looking for so i’m ready to go when you are!”

“i just won a game of chess against namjoon” tae points out with a bright smile and namjoon squaWks in offence

“you did noT-“

“i said checkmate so that means i won”

“that literally- get out of my library.” namjoon deadpans and points towards the door

he takes chess very seriously and he will not be riDICULED in his library!!!!!!!!

“-all i’m saying is that we didn’t have to come all the way to the library for some dumb book that you could’ve easily bought online-“

“i like holding a physical copy of a book when i’m reading!! plus, i told you you didn’t have to come with me” you nod in acknowledgement when tae holds the door open for you “why thank you, good sir”

“no problem dweeb”  

you immediately stop in your tracks when you notice the thunderclouds in the sky and the drizzling of rain

frick

you didn’t know it was going to rain today

you didn’t bring an umbrella out!!!!!

“oh, shoot… it looks like we’re just going to have to wait out the storm and then head home…” you purse your lips as you look up at the dark clouds

you stick your hand out from underneath the canopy and let out a sigh as a couple fAT droplets splatter down on your palm

tae sticks his hand out and lets out a hum “don’t be ridiculous!” he scoffs “here, you’re going to use my jacket as an umbrella-“ tae takes his jacket off and drapes it around you so that it’s covering you  

“but you’re going to get wet?” you pull it up slightly to make sure that it’s going to keep your hair from getting wet

“that’s where you’re wrong, y/l/n. you’re going to be my umbrella-“ tae squats down in front of you and you immediately let out a snort

no way

no way!!!!

“if you’re implying that you piggyback me the rest of the way home you’re crazy” you shake your head and resist the urge to kiCk his ass and knock him over “you’ll drop me!!!!”

tae looks back at you with a raised brow

“i’m not going to drop you, i promise!! come on!!! riDE ME”

you gawk and lean over to slap a hand over tae’s mouth when a couple of people exiting the library give you guys weird looks

you laugh nervously and give them a thumbs up

well

it looks like you don’t have a choice

“if you drop me, i’ll kill you.” you grumble as you hop up onto tae’s back and hold the jacket out so that the both of you are somewhat shielded

you yelp when he stands up straight and bounces you slightly to adjust you

he squeezes the underside of your thighs playfully

“not if i kill u first, nerd”

you don’t know why

but you feel like the vibe with jungkook tonight is a little different

usually when you guys hang out (you’ve hung out a couple times already but this is the first time you’ve been in such an intimate and private environment) are always wrapped up in playful banter but.,.,. tonight is just.,.,. different

it’s not a big deal but

you don’t know how else to describe it

you invited him over for dinner and a movie and just to hang out in general

and you’re in the middle of choosing another movie to watch buT you guys can’t decide on whether you should go with captain america or iron man first

“this is the hardest decision i think i’ve ever had to make in my entire life.” you frown before pursing your lips in thought

“i honestly don’t care because i’ve watched these movies like ten times each.” jungkook snorts and scoots a little closer to you as you continue to flick through the choices

you let out a little sigh of frustration

choosing a damn movie should noT be this difficult

“just choose something. anything.” jungkook says a liTtle more aggressively than intended

you turn to glance at you and he flashes you a smile and shifts closer until the side of his thigh is pressed up right against yours

hm

“i mean, i’m biased because captain america is my favourite but if you wanna watch iron man i-!” jungkook hooks a finger under your chin and turns your head before pressing his lips against yours to shut you up and you know what

it woRks

you didn’t think this was going to happen but you’re not complaining

you pull away quickly and gesture to the tv “w-we haven’t chosen a-“

“shush” jungkook pulls you back down and you twitch when you feel his hands slide down your back

your eyes flutter shut and your grip loosens around the remote and jungkook pulls it from your hand before tossing it onto the sofa chair blindly

you’re so lost in jungkook that you don’t even hear the front door opening

“oh, so you get to do it on the couch but i don’t?”

you pull away agAin and jungkook lets out a little huff before resting his head back against the couch

“tae! i didn’t… think you would be home so-“

“no way.” taehyung gawks when he sees who you’re straddling “jeon jungkook??? seriously????” he snorts as he kicks his shoes off “i mean, i knew you had low standards, but i didn’t think they were this low.”

“kim, nice to see you too.” jungkook mutters sarcastically and clenches his jaw

tae rolls his eyes almost immediately

“looks like someone still doesn’t know how to take a damn joke”

you clear your throat

it seems like there’s a little bit of tension in the air

maybe it’s time to break that tension with a jokE

“so like do you guys only address other people by their surnames or-“

“how do you two know each other anyways?” tae keeps his glare on jungkook

you let out a sigh and crawl off of jungkook because it lookS like you’re not going to be getting any more alone time with him anytime soon

“we met at the sneaky party that you threw.” you prop your elbow up on the top of the couch and lean against your fist before tucking one of your legs under the other “remember? you made us play seven minutes in heaven and-“

god damnit

tae wants to punch himself in the face

“oh, rigghhhttt.”

he should’ve gone in there with you instead of setting you up with jungkook

so

this is his owN fault

if he hadn’t invited jungkook in the first place then you wouldn’t have met him and you wouldn’t be making out with him in the middle of your guys’ living room

or maybe this is your fault!!!

if yOU didn’t come home that night then you wouldn’t have met him and you wouldn’t be making out with him in the middle of your guys’ living room

“well, don’t worry about me! you guys keep doing your thing.” taehyung smiles sweetly before disappearing towards the bedrooms

you wait to hear the faint click of his door closing aaaanndd-

click

“now… where were we?” jungkook tugs on your wrist and you smile shyly before moving back to your original position

as nice as it is making out with jungkook on your couch you can’t help but think about what taehyung has up his sleeve

because there was something about his smile that didn’t sit right with-

vrROOOOOOOOOOOO

“oh, jesus-“ you pull away from jungkook in surprise when taehyung suddenly pops out from the hallway with the vacuum cleaner

“don’t mind me! y/n sheds a LOT so i’m just cleaning up all of her hair!!” taehyung rolls the vacuum underneath jungkook’s legs before whistling a happy tune to himself “just wanna make this experience as comfortable as possible for you two lovebirds!”

“do you have to do this now???” jungkook groans and taehyung pauses before reaching down to turn the vacuum off

“you’re right! i won’t do this now-“

“-god, thank you-“

“i’ll get to it after you leave! what are we watching, folks??” jungkook purses his lips in frustration when taehyung wiggles his way in between you and him

he retracts his arm down from the couch slowly

“you know what, i should probably leave…” jungkook glances over at you with a small smile “maybe i can come back when… you know.”

“yeah, that’s probably for the best…” you laugh uneasily

this is only slighTly embarrassing

“aw, come on! the more the merrier!” tae pushes his bottom lip out in a childish pout “how could you say no to iron man??”

“i have some things to do anyway. it was good seeing you, kim.” jungkook pats his knee before getting up off the couch

“mm… i can’t say the same.” tae shrugs and brings his attention back to the screen

you can’t help but roll your eyes at how immature he’s being and you get up from the couch as well “i’ll walk you to the door, jungkook-“

“he’s perfectly capable of walking to the door by himself- oW” tae hisses when you reach down and pinch his ear to shut him up

“so… i’ll see you around?” jungkook smiles shyly and scratches the back of his neck after he gets his shoes on

“mhm!” you nod and reach over to pinch a piece of fluff off his shirt before getting up on your tippy toes to give him a kiss on the cheek “i’ll text ya”

taehyung turns his head and watches you and jungkook talking to each other by the front door

he takes his bottom lip in between his teeth and chews on it anxiously

this sucks

do you like jungkook?

obviouSly you do because you were sucking his face off when he walked in here

gRGRGs

this sucks >:-(

whatever

you’re super lame anyway so it’s not a huge loss

he can just.,.,,. he can just find someone else

tae looks away quickly when he sees you giving jungkook a kiss on the cheek

that’s not fair

how come u won’t kiss him on the cheek

he deserves cheek kisses as muCh as jungkook

maybe he was dumb to think that he had a chance with you

either that or he realised faR too late that he has feelings for you

:-(

the loved-up smile immediately drops from your face the moment jungkook disappears into the elevators and you shut the front door

“i think i’m going to take a little snooze. all that vacuuming tuckered me ouT” taehyung lets out a yawn and gets up off the couch

your body seems like it’s on autopilot mode as you practically stoRm down the hallway and follow him to his room

he’s craZy if he thinks you’re going to let him get away with doing what he just did

“by the way, since i did the vacuuming today, it’s only fair that you do it for the next month - don’t you think so?”

“what the hell was that?” you snAp as you cross your arms “you totally sabotaged my date with jungkook!”

taehyung plops down on his bed and leans back against the headboard before pulling his phone out “i have no idea what you’re talking about”

“we were having a really nice time together-“

“yeah, it sure looked like you were enjoying yourself considering you were practically sucking his face off-“

“and you just swoOp in and start vacuuming???? and-“

“you know what, y/l/n? take it up with the complaint department of kim taehyung.”

you pause

what the hell is he talking about

“wh- what are you talking about?”

“you heard me. call the complaint department.” taehyung raises his phone and wiggles it

fine

you’ll play along with whatever stupid game this is

you dial tae’s number and bring your phone up to your ear all while maintaining eye contact with tae who looks vEry smug at the moment

ring

taehyung’s phone buzzes in his hand

ring

he clears his throat and hits the answer button before bringing it up to his ear

ring

“hello! this is kim taehyung headquarters, you’re speaking to secretary kim taehyung. how may i be of service today?” he greets brightly and flashes you a bright smile and a thumbs up

you have literally never felt so ridiculous in your entire life  

you let out a quiet breath to calm yourself down

just play along!!! just play aloNG  

“i… i would like to file a complaint about kim taehyung tO the kim taehyung complaint department!”

“great, can i get a name?”

“y/n y/l/n.” you can’t believe you’re taking this phone call seriously

taehyung leans back against his headboard and crosses one ankle over the other

“alright, miss y/l/n. i’ll connect you to the kim taehyung complaint department right now. i’m going to put you on hold now, if that’s okay?”

“taehyung, you’re wasting my TIME-“

taehyung literally puts you on hoLD and tosses his phone aside and you scoff when your phone starts playing an overly-cheerful piano version of twinkle twinkle little star  

you glance over at tae

he pokes his tongue into his cheek uninterestedly as he inspects his nails  

…

“…taehyung, i swear to god-“  

“shush!“ taehyung holds a finger out to shut you up “you don’t want to miss your call, do you?”

“jesus christ.” you mutter and pinch the bridge of your nose

this is ridiculous

taehyung picks his phone back up

he clears his throat

“hello! this is the kim taehyung complaint department of kim taehyung headquarters. you’re speaking to head manager kim taehyung. how may i be of service today?”

you roll your eyes before shaking your head

“okAy now that you’re finally giving me a chance to talk about-“

“oOh, sorry!” taehyung winces “my lunch break just started. you know how it is.” he pushes his bottom lip out in a mocking pout before trailing his pointer finger down from his eye to his cheek “try calling again in an hour! byeeeeee.” taehyung hangs uP on you before tossing his phone aside

UH

whAT-

WHAKJFHS

he looks over at you and raises a brow “…any success with the hotline?”

oOH

oHHDKSJHKSJD

he drives you CRAZY

you don’t know what happened!!!

he’s been so sweet to you for like a month and now it’s like the taehyung you met five months ago

and now he’s calling you y/l/n again and he’s making snide comments and being ruDe and wow

you should’ve known it wasn’t going to last forever

bAck to normal

this sucks

you honest to god don’t know what happened

whatever

if he’s going to be a stubborn prick there’s nothing you can do about it

taehyung lets out a breath once you close his door

and he can’t help but think:

maybe this is a wake up call

you hanging with jungkook and all

maYbe this is god’s way of telling him to make a move otherwise he’s going to regret it

he’s liked you for nearly a month and he literally hasn’t done anything about it so mAYbe this was a swift kick to his ass telling him to man up and dO something

“yeah.” taehyung whispers to himself

yeah

…he’s going to tell you that he likes you!!!!

and he’s going to do it as soon as possible

so

uh

it’s been about a week and a bit since your faiLure of a date with jungkook

he hasn’t made a move to reach out to you which is kind of odd

you diD leave him a text message but he never got back to you and you didn’t want to be that person who double-texted and just radiated desperation  so you didn’t do anything else

maybe he was just weirded out by tae or something

speaking of tae

you pull your phone out of your pocket when you feel it buzzing and you bring it up to your ear

“hello?”

“where do we keep all those takeout menus?” you hear some clattering on the other end of the line and you safely assume that tae’s going through all the drawers

“y/n!”

“in the-“

“oh, never mind! i found them. okay, see you soon… raccoon!”

you snort and roll your eyes

taehyung noticed that you and namjoon always said see you later alligator and in a while crocodile to each other instead of saying goodbye and he wanted to be a part of it too buT namjoon was like if you still the alligator thing from me i will give you a million paper cuts

so he came up with an alternative and that was see you soon..,.,. raccoon

it’s cute that he tried

“y/n!!”

“toodle-loo kangaroO” you hum before hanging up and slipping your phone back into your pocket

“y/n!” you turn to glance over your shoulder and you feel your heart beginning to race almost immEdiately when you see jungkook jogging towards you

oh god

what are you wearing today

you look down

jeans and… is this tae’s sweatshirt?????

oops

he must’ve mixed your guys’ laundry up agAin

“hey!” you smile brightly and wipe your sweaTy palms down on your jeans

you don’t know why you’re so nervous all of a sudden

you’ve literally had his tongue in your mouth before so

okay ew

“hey, i was hoping to bump into you! i’m sorry i haven’t texted you all week, i’ve been like, super busy.”

you’re far too infatuated with jungkook’s pretty brown eyes to notice that he smirks and nods in acknowledgement at another girl behind you

“oh! um, no, don’t worry about it.” you laugh nervously “look, i’m really sorry about what happened the last time we hung out… i didn’t think tae would be so… y’know…” you trail off awkwardly and scratch the back of your neck

“it’s totally fine, don’t worry about it!” jungkook shakes his head and smiles brightly at you “that’s actually why i wanted to talk to you… would you maybe be interested in a makeup date? i don’t want to seem too eager but… are you free tonight? maybe we can pick up from where we left off…?” he hums, reaching over to tuck a strand of hair behind your ear

you flush almost immediately

he wants to hang out toniGht

you need at least two to three business days to prepare when you make plans with someone

oH but it’s jungkook.,,.,.

“uh, yeah! yes, i’m super free tonight. i mean, not like, not that like i didn’t have plans or anything but-”

“great! i’ll come and pick you up at your place around… 7 o’clock?”

well

it looks like you officially have plans tonight

here’s the thing

taehyung has decided that tonight is the night

tonight is the night where he’s going to tell you that he might have a teensy crush on you and he’s just hoping it’ll work out

he’s never really had to.,,. confess to someone before considering he’s usually the one being confessed to

so this is a whole new game for him

he’s sure it’ll be fine though!!

he made sure to vacuum and dust the apartment and just make everything a lot neater before you got back

he timed it perfectly so that the pizza would get here ten minutes before you got home so that when you guys dig in you won’t burn the roof of your mouths with hoT cheese

he even picked up a bouquet of roses for you just because he felt like that would be something you’d like!!

and now he’s busy lighting candles because he wants everything to be perfect for you

tae perks up when he hears the front door slam shut and the faint jingling of your keys

you’re home!!!!!!

hehe

he nearly trips over himself as he rushes out from the kitchen

he glances over his shoulder at his romantic setup just to double check that he didn’t accidentally light anything on fire lol

“hey!” he greets a liTTle too enthusiastically before clearing his throat

okAy

keep it casual

“i mean… hey.” his voice deepens a little bit but his boxy grin returns to his face when you look over at him “there’s an extra large pizza sitting on the table with our names on it anD i even ordered that garlic aioli you like so much-“

“did we plan something tonight?” you furrow your brows in confusion and wrack through your brain to see if you remember making dinner plans with tae or not

huh

usually you remember these types of things

taehyung falters before pointing at the tv over his shoulder “uh, well, no, we didn’t plan anything but i thought that maybe we could have some dinner and maybe watch another one of those nature documentaries again!”

if he’s lucky maybe you’ll fall asleep midway through the documentary which will result in an accidental-but-totally-on-purpose snuggle on the couch again

>:-)

you look over at the tv and notice that he’s already turned netflix on

your favourite candle is burning away on the coffee table

there’s a bowl of warm, buttery popcorn (your favourite) mixed with mini peanut butter cups (his favourite)

aw

that’s awfully nice of tae

you feel a twingE of guilt knowing that you’re about to shut him down because you already have plans

but you’re sure he’ll understand

“that’s super nice of you and all but i actually already have plans…” you smile sheepishly and scratch your temple

the bright smile starts to fade from tae’s face and he purses his lips slightly “oh…”

that’s kind of a bummer

he really wanted to spend the night with you

tonight was supposed to be the night after all

“maybe another time! you can invite some of your pals over and hang with them! no parties, though. i’m serious.” you tease and press your hand against tae’s chest to lean against him as you take your shoes off

“right, yeah…” tae reaches up to place his hand over yours and his heart is beating so hard he’s sure you can feel it “are you… going out with namjoon or something?”

“nope - i’m going out with jungkook!”

wait

ur what

taehyung swallows thickly

what do u mean ur going out with jungkook

“considering the fact that you kinda ruined the last date i had with him - he asked me today if i wanted to go out for dinner tonight and i said yes!” you squeal excitedly and give his chest a pat before brushing past him to go to your bedroom

“why… why would you say yes?” tae blurts out

“why wouldn’t i say yes?” you raise a brow at tae before heading over to your closet and starting to rifle through your options “it was kind of a last minute thing so i don’t have a lot of time to get ready but luckily i know jusT what to wear…”

“but like… i ordered a pizza for us?” taehyung doesn’t know why he’s so nervous all of a sudden

“uh-huh - could you turn around for a second? i need to change.”

he wants to ask you to cancel ur plans and hang out with him

he ordered a pizZA for the two of you to share!!!!

he just doesn’t like that you’re hanging out with jungkook because he knoWs there’s a mutual attraction between the two of you and he doesn’t liKE THAT

not to mention

jungkook is a one night stand kind of guy and he’s probably going to bail on you after getting into your pants

the only reason why he’s still spending time with you is because you haven’t had sex with him yet and jungkook isn’t a quitter

taehyung only knows all of this because he lived with the guy last year for crying out loud

jeon jungkook is a young man of many talents and one of them is playing the ‘i’m not like other guys :-)’ card very, veRy well

“tae? could you help me?” taehyung is snapped out of his thoughts by your soft voice and he-

oh wow

god you’re pretty

you’re wearing a baby blue mini dress patterned with little daisies

you reach up to tug at one of the sleeves before turning around and gesturing to the zipper in the back

“oh, uh, yeah.” he steps towards you and you pull your hair aside

taehyung clears his throat as he pulls your zipper up slowly

his eyes flicker up to yours in the mirror

“you look… good. you look really pretty.”

the shyest of smiles tug at the corner of your mouth and you mutter a little ‘thank u’

tae can’t help but wish that you were dressing up for a date with him instead of a date with someone else

“i’ll see you later, tae!”

taehyung lets out a breath as he hears the door slam shut

looks like it’s just dinner for one tonight

he leans over and blows out the candle

you rub your hands together and shiver as you step out of the building

you hop down the stairs happily

it’s definitely a little chilly tonight but you’re not going to let that dampen the mooD

maybe you should’ve brought a cardigan with you

you still have time to go up and get it

but then again, jungkook’ll probably be here soon so you’ll be in the warmth of his heated car in no time

you just have to wait for a little bit!

you sit down on the steps and pick a piece of lint off your dress

and so, you wait

and you wait

and you wait

and you wait and you wait and you wait until you’ve been sitting on the steps for two whole hours

jungkook hasn’t texted

he hasn’t called

you’ve heard absolutely nothing from him

the only reason why you haven’t gone back up to the apartment is because you’re paranoid that if jungkook comes and you’re uP there then he’ll think that you’RE the one who bailed and you definitely don’t want that-

you nearly drop your phone when it starts buzzing in your hand and you don’t know whether to feel angry or relieved to see jungkook’s number on the screen

“hello?” you clear your throat and wrap your arms tighter around yourself

jesus it’s coLd

“y/n, i am so sorry… i completely forgot about dinner tonight… can we reschedule?”

“n-no, it’s okay, it happens to all of us!” you shake your head as you push yourself up off the stairs “i didn’t think i would be so easily forgotten considering the fact that you asked me like four hours ago but-“

you freeze when you hear the sound of someone else’s soft giggle and a faint ‘who’s that, kookie?’ in the background and you immediately pale

is he

is he seriously with someone else right now

“sorry, were you saying something? i think you got cut off.”

you poke your tongue into your cheek and let out a scoff

“…go fuck yourself, kookie.”

you hang up on him before he has the chance to respond and shove your phone back into your purse

jesus

what a jerk!!!!!

you waited two hours for him!!! and it tuRns out he was with someone else the entiRE friggin time

you feel so stupid

the entire elevator ride back up to the apartment you’re thinking of a hundred different ways to castrate jeon jungkook

you would love to just drive your fist riGHT into that absurdly-toned stomach

put some high heels on and jump all over his muscular thighs

maybe even-

“you’re back much earlier than i expected.”

you close the door behind you and double lock it

tae is sitting on the couch still watching the nature docuseries

and it looks like he finished most of the popcorn and peanut-butter cups himself

taehyung furrows his brows as he checks the time on his phone “it’s only-“

“he didn’t come. he forgot about dinner.” you force a smile on your face as you bend down to untie your shoelaces

taehyung frowns

uh oh

“…but you’ve been gone for two hours-“

“because i was waiting outside on the sidewalk-“

“well why didn’t you just come back up-“

“because he said he would pick me up outside, and i didn’t want him to think i bailed on him or anything if i wasn’t waiting for him downstairs.” your voice wavers slightly as you yank your hair down from your high ponytail

taehyung can see that you’re visibly upset and it makes hiM mad that jungkook flaked on his date with you

but at the same time it makes him mad that you said yes to going out with jungkook instead of hanging out with him!!!

he doesn’t know what to think!!!

maybe it’s because he’s eaten like 100 mini peanut butter cups and feels suPer jittery but he’s just vEry confused and frustrated about a lot of things but one thing that he knows for sure is that he likes u a lot and he’s hurt because yoU chose jungkook over him

and he knows that you’re not obligated to hang out with him anD he supposes it’s not fair of him to act so selfishly considering the fact that you don’t know about his feelings for you but stiLL

he’s allowed to wallow in a pool of self-pity for as long as he likes!!!!  

“i’m not surprised he bailed on you.” taehyung mutters to himself and turns the volume up on the tv

you immediately stop in your tracks

oh boy

if you weren’t upset a second ago you’re definitely upset now

you drop your purse to the floor before storming over and grabbing the remote from him and promptly turning the tv off

“hey, i was watching that!” taehyung snaps and reaches over to grab the remote back from you “give it back-“

“why are you such an asshole?!” you hiss and toss the remote aside “for the last couple of months, i’ve been nothing but a wonderful roommate! i cook, i clean, i buy the groceries, i make sure the bills are always paid on time so that you can enjoy your hot lava showers, i do the laundry, i even iron your stupid bandanas for you because i don’t want you walking around with crinkly ass bandanas on your head - and you have repaid me with absolutely nothing!” tears of anger sting at your eyes and you reach up to wipe them away aggressively

taehyung gets up from the couch “jesus, y/n, take it easy-“

“all you do is sit on your ass all day and whine and complain and make mean comments and push me around and leave your shiT everywhere a-and constantly bring girls home and i hate you! i absolutely, 100% hate you with every fibre of my being and i want you out of my goddamn apartment by the end of tomorrow night. i want you out!”

taehyung’s eyes widen in surprise

okay

first of all

ouch

“you don’t hate me.” taehyung shakes his head and gets up from the couch

“i do. i do hate you. like, a lot.” you mumble and cross your arms

he’s quiet for a second and he clenches his jaw  

“fine, here’s what we’re going to do.”

you furrow your brows in confusion as tae pushes the couch to the side of the room before proceeding to push the coffee table to the side as well so that the centre of the living room is bare

“what the hell are you doing??”

“you stand by the front door,” taehyung points towards the door “and i’ll stand way over there by the balcony doors. from this point, there are approximately twelve steps away from both the front door and the balcony doors, so it’s fair. every time you list one reason as to why you hate me, you take a step forward.”

you immediately scoff

“oh, please. i can list a hundred reasons as to why i hate you.“

“however!” taehyung raises a finger to shut you up “if i can defend myself against you, i can take a step forward as well. if i get to the centre of the room before you, i get to stay. if you get to the centre before i do, then i’ll leave.”

“what do you mean defend yourself?? that hardly seems fair-”

“hey, i’m giving you the chance to kick me out. don’t you want to take that chance since you obviously hate me, y/n?” he seethes and clenches his fists at his sides

“you know what? fine. i have a vEry detailed list of reasons why i hate you in my notes app and i’m glad that i finally get to share it with you” you pull your phone out and open up the document

(you made this document within the first month of him moving in but you haven’t actually opened it in a long time so it’s kinDa empty so it looks like you’re going to have to improvise)

taehyung snorts and rolls his eyes as he leans back against the balcony doors “you’re not doing a very good job at hiding your crazy, y/l/n.”

there he goes again with anoTher snarky comment

you are sO ready to win this fight and kick kim taehyung out of your apartment

you ignore his remark and clear your throat before taking one step forward “reason #1: you constantly use my shampoo. it’s my shampoo!!! i bought it with my own money aNd it’s on my side of the tub!!”

“how dare you?” taehyung scoffs “i’m helping you by using your shampoo.”

what the hell is he even talking about

“what- please, enliGhten me.” you snort “how are you helping me by using up all of my shampoo?”

“see, the thing is - you use too much conditioner. i’m a very observant person, and i’ve noticed that since you use too much conditioner every time you wash your hair, you’re always having to buy a new bottle of conditioner way, waY before you’ve finished using up the shampoo. so i’m just helping out by using up all the shampoo so that the ratio of shampoo to conditioner is always consistent! if you think about it, i’m actually helping you out.”

taehyung takes a step forward and you gawk at him before shaking your head “that is noT fair-“

“hey, i defended myself and i backed myself up with good reasons. next reason!”

“fine!” you take another step forward and look at the list on your phone again “you always, always leave your dirty dishes in the sink and you never wash them which means i end up having to take care of them for you. have you noticed i never leave any of my dirty dishes in the sink?”

“you know, you’re right about that.” taehyung lets out a sigh and crosses his arms “…however, the problem with your statement is that you don’t give me the chance to take care of my dirty dishes in the sink. i leave them there for one minute and the next thing i know, when i walk back into the kitchen, you’re already there scrubbing away at the dishes. i don’t wash my dishes because you won’t let me. you’re right! you never leave any of your dirty dishes in the sink because you always eat takeout - do you realise you’re contributing to the plastic waste pollution that is already greatly impacting our planet? do you hate the earth, y/n? is that it? you like watching nature documentaries yet you don’t seem to care about our planet…”

“i-i don’t hate the earth!!!! i love the earth!!!!” you stammer over your words at the sudden accusation of you wanting to watch the world burn

“say that to the fAT bag of plastic straws in the kitchen cabinet. i highly suggest you invest in a reusable metal straw, like me.”

shiT

okay it’s fine you still have plenty of things to complain about

“you drink juice straight out of the carton!”

“i drink the juice out of the carton because you constantly complain about me having dirty dishes. if i drink out of the carton, i won’t have to use a cup, which results in less dirty dishes. you’re welcome.”

“you consTAntly leave the toilet seat up”

“actually, you constantly leave the toilet seat down.”

“whenever you bring your special friends over you guys are always too loud aNd it always sounds like goats screeCHING”

taehyung holds a finger out and takes another step forward

oh you have goT to be kidding

“you haven’t-“

“have you ever heard me?”

you falter for a second

he hasn’t brought a girl around in a while but you remember that when he would bring them over usually you’d just hear,.,. the girl

thinking about it now you don’t know if you’ve ever heard taehyung moaning obnoxiously

“the ladies are the ones making the goat noises, not me - so you can’t blame me here because i’m not the one making the sounds.” taehyung laughs lightly and the smug smile drops from your face when he takes a step forward

oh my god

this game is impossible

you’re never going to win

you’re never going to get rid of him

taehyung totaLLy rigged the entire thing

you hate him!!!!

“i hate you.” you take a giAnt step forward

taehyung raises a brow

huH

so that’s how you’re going to play it

alright

“i hate you more.” he does the same

“i hate you most!” you take another step forward

“i hate you mostest!”

“i hate you… x100!!!!”

“i hate you infinity!!!”

and now

you’re both standing toe to toe nose to nose in the middle of the living room and taehyung raises a brow at you as if daring you to make a move

you want nothing more than to wipe that cocky smirk off his face

and he wants nothing more than to continue to push your buttons and piss you off

…

the sound of your phone clattering to the ground might as well be a starter gunshot

the two of you practically lunge at each other and your mouths smear together clumsily

your teeth bump together with scraping kisses but honestly you can’t bring yourself to care

there’s something sweet about the way his lips taste

…it’s that damn strawberry gum he’s always chewing on

you feel tae’s hands slide down from your waist and skim over your bum briefly before he’s wrapping his fingers around the underside of your thighs and hoisting you up in one swift movement

you let out a gasp of surprise before winding your arms around tae’s neck instinctively “jesUs tae give a girl a warning next time-“

“next time?” he jokes and your cheeks flush at the implication that this is going to happen again sometime in the future

luckily the bedroom isn’t far from the living room because tae’s low-key afraid he’s going to drop you at some point

“u know what i mean”

“no, i don’t think i do- also, we’re fucking in my room because i’m the one with the condoms-“

“how do you know i don’t have condoms???”

“…you ever think about becoming a comedian?”

you roll your eyes before leaning down and covering his mouth with yours

“hey, i just realised i didn’t get the chance to tell you about all the things that i despise about you!” the mattress bounces underneath your weight as tae plops you down on it

you let out a huff and reach up to brush a couple strands of hair away from your face

“impossible because i’m literally perfect in every single way possible-“

“you wanna know what i hate about you?” tae cuts you off and parts your legs before crawling over you “you watch rilakkuma and you are an aDULt-”

you gawk immediately and resist the urge to smack him on the side of his head “says the one who watches naRUtO-“

“and not to mention i hate your stupid fruit-printed panties-“ taehyung growls and grinds down against your centre as he nips down your neck

you instinctively arch your back against him before letting out a snort “they’re cute and comFORtabLE-“

“if you’re going to walk around the apartment with no shorts on, at least wear something a little lacier.” he rolls his eyes as he pulls away from you and hops off so that he’s standing at the foot of the bed

you shuffle up to settle your head back against the pillows “oh, fuck you”

before you get a chance to get comfortable tae’s grabbing your ankles then pulling you back down so that your legs are dangling off the end of the mattress

your eyes widen when he suddenly appears above you

“trust me, i’m about to.” he leans down to give you a quick kiss before pulling away and you unconsciously let out a whimper

taehyung lowers to his knees and pushes your dress up until it’s crumpled up around your waist

god  

of course your panties have peaches on them  

fitting, considering the fact he’s going to be eating your peach in a minute

“oh, i also hate that you watch nature documentaries instead of shitty reality television shows like the reST of us-“ he grumbles and yanks your panties off before tossing them aside

you instinctively squeeze your legs together and taehyung reaches up to grip onto your kneecaps

“you know, i don’t know why you have to be so judgemental about eveRYthing that i do!! like so what if i watch rilakkuma and documentaries about sharks and- namjoon was actually the one who introduced me to nature docs in the first place because he said that cartoons would rot my brain so if you’re looking to put the blame on someone i personally would hiGHly suggest that- oH“ you yelp in surprise when tae suddenly fuLLy spreads your legs in one swift movement

he looks up at you from in between your legs and his fingers dig into the soft flesh of your thigh when he feels you wanting to cloSe them again

“are you going to shut up and let me go down on you or what?”

well

it doesn’t take you very long to discover what soo-young, or joy, was so damn happy about

your back arches and your lashes flutter in disbelief when you feel tae gliding his tongue in between your folds in quick, deep strokes

you don’t really want to give him the satisfaction of hearing you moan because of him but goD he’s making it really hard to not moan

your fingers grip tightly at the bedsheets and you nearly bite your bottom lip off when taehyung’s the one who lets out a throaty groan

“a-ah-“ this is the first loud moan he’s been able to pull from you and you feel the curve of his mouth as he smiles against you

“where do you think you’re going?” you let out a little yelp of surprise when taehyung wraps his arms around your thighs and pulls you down so that he can get even deeper

“tae- oh my god-“ you’re practically blubbering at this point and taehyung is very satisfied knowing about his effect on you

your knuckles feel creaky from clutching at the bedsheets so tightly but somehow you manage to pry one hand off before you’re tangling your fingers into tae’s honey brown locks and giving him a little tug of encouragement

the strands of hair feel awfully soft between your fingers and you’re reminded for a brief second that it’s because he’s using your organic shampoo and condition-

“don’T stop, oh my god, don’t stop-“ you accidentally give him a particularly rough yank when he suckles harder and flicks his tongue rapidly over your nerves

you can feel your muscles starting to get tighter

your abdomen starting to clench and unclench

and that familiar warmth growing in your stomach

the tingly feeling from the tips of your toes to the tips of your fingers

you’re almost there

getting closer and closer to cloud nine

and just when you’re literally a second away from exploding-

your eyes pop open when tae suddenly pulls away and your body twitches in response to being so close yet so far  

“wait, wha-“ you prop yourself up on your elbows

your dress is drooping off one shoulder and you gawk at tae when it seems like he’s not going to get back down there anytime soon “what are you doing?? i was literally about to-“

“if you’re going to cum-“ tae gets back up onto his knees before tugging his shirt off in one swift movement

oh

hello

he tilts his head and offers you a smirk when he notices your eyes wandering

“-you might as well do it around my cock.”  

it doesn’t take very long for the two of you to prep for the main course

in fact it kind of seems like a competition as the both of you riP your clothes off  

you’re pretty sure you broke a thread or two on your dress but it’s fine

“you ready?” there’s a playful glint in tae’s eyes as he rips the foil package open with his teeth

you resist the urge to roll your eyes as you settle back against the fluffy pillows

“are you ready?” you challenge with a raised brow

christ almighty

he likes you but you’re reaLLy getting on his nerves

“i cannot wait to fuck the brattiness out of you” tae grumbles more to himself than to you

also

you knew tae was packing even beFore you got to see it up close and personal (like all those times he’d walk around the apartment wearing nothing but a pair of sweatpants) but it still doesn’t fail to surprise you looking at it now

he’s an impressive size, to say the least

tae glances at you for a second as if to gauge your reaction as he rolls the condom onto his length smoothly

well

the way you spread your legs for him the moment he gets the condom on is definitely a good sign

tae settles in between your legs and leans down to give you an (unexpectedly sweet) kiss as he presses against your entrance

he immediately notices the way your brows pinch together in discomfort

it hAs been a while after all

“you alright?” he asks softly as you envelope him in your arms

“don’t get all soft on me now, kim” you tease and brush some hair out of his eyes

he snorts

“trust me, i’m the opposite of that-“

your mouth falls open in a silent gasp when tae slides in smoothly with no resistance at aLL from your walls

he did a really good job warming you up that’S for sure

you dig your nails into his shoulders when he drives forward hard and he swoops down to catch your lips in a kiss

“jesus, you’re tight-“ he huffs when he feels you clench around him

you whimper breathlessly while pulling his broad, muscled shoulders closer and bucking your hips up towards him

“do you hate me now, hm?” tae growls lowly as he hitches one of your legs up to his hip and continues to piston into you

“i, nngh, i h-hate you s-so much-“ you’re practically sobbing with pleasure and taehyung is most definitely going to keep this memory in his spank bank for future use heyO

he’s going so mind-blowingly hard he’s sure that he’s going to break the bed

his breathing is raggedly in time with every push into you

he groans and throws his head back when he feels himself getting closer n closer to the edge

he never thought it was possible to feel this good

god is a woman yes She IS

your head digs back against the plush pillows and tae lowers his body so that he’s resting on his forearms

his sticky chest is practically crushed against yours as he continues to drive you into the bed and you can’t help but let yourself indulge in the feeling of his muscles rippling underneath your fingertips

“you don’t- fuck, you don’t hate me, admit it-“

“jesus tae of course i don- god, h-harder,” you hiccup and dig your nails into his back so hard that you’re positive you’re drawing a little bit of blood “please-“

if there’s one thing that taehyung knows he’s super good at

it’s taunting you

and he’ll never forgive himself if he lets this window of opportunity close on him

“please, who?” he taunts you with hot breaths against your ear “say my name-“

“f-fuck you-“

“jesus, fuck, say my fucking name-“ his hand slips in between your legs and you twitch when he starts rubbing quick circles over your clit “let everybody know who’s making you feel this good-“ taehyung groans and buries his face into the crook of your neck

“tae- oh my god, taehyung-!” you cry out sharply and immediately tighten around the next powerful push he delivers inside of you

your orgasm shockwaves through you as you pulse hard around him

you can practically hear your blood roaring in your ears as he continues to fuck you through your orgasm

speaking of orgasms

tae’s thrusts are starting to get jerky and uneven and you can tell by the way his nails dig into the soft flesh of your hips that he’s close

“so fucking tight-“ tae stiffens and rams into you one last time before his orgasm practically explodes from the centre of him and into the condom

his lips part and he lets out a low moan of satisfaction before going slack on top of you

you’re nothing but light twitches and whimpers as taehyung pulls out of you gently

you feel him pressing soft kisses to your shoulders and you reach up to stroke your hand over his damp locks before he’s rolling off of you with a gasp

…

okay

oookaaay

okay!

so

you just

you and tae just

y’all really did that

the realisation that the two of you just had sex seems to hit the both of you at the same time

tae clears his throat

“so.”

“so.” you repeat quietly

you prop yourself up on your elbows and turn to look over at him

“you can keep living here, i was just… pent-up anger, you know how it builds.”

“oh, yeah, i get it.” tae clears his throat as he sits up to toss the soiled condom away

you lie back down and let out a breath

would it be weird for you to stay

is he not asking you to leave because he’s just being polite

o god

yeah

maybe you should go back to your room

you lift the covers off gingerly and sit up as your eyes flicker about to search for your dress “i should probably-“

tae reaches out quickly and wraps his fingers around your wrist

you turn to look at him

he looks dewy in the warm glow of the bedside lamp (but also because he’s kinda sweAty)

his cheeks are rosy and his hair is mussed and he has blotches of red dotted along his neck and if you look hard enough you’re able to make out the faint crescent moon marks embedded in his bicep (you really need to cut ur nails soon)

he’s so cute

“you- uh, you can stay if you want to… you didn’t get a chance to put your fresh bedsheets on anyway”

his heart skips a beat when you nod and curl back under the covers with him

a moment of silence goes by

tae turns over onto his side so that he’s facing you

“do you actually hate me?” he murmurs and reaches over to tuck a strand of hair behind your ear

you hum

“i could never.”

he smiles happily before flipping over onto his back

he doesn’t know if now would be a good time to tell you about how he feels about you

the comfortable silence is nice and also he’s still a little anxious about how you’re going to respond

he doesn’t want to ruin this bubble that you guys are in right now

so maybe it’d be better to tell you tomorrow

yeah

he’ll do it tomorrow

as you’re lying there in the dark, the thought of ‘do i like taehyung?’ crosses your mind

and there’s really only one answer to that question

there’s a reason why you weren’t all that hurt when jungkook didn’t show up

there’s a reason why the entire time you were waiting for jungkook to pick you up, the only thing you were thinking about was how you definitely bailed on tae and how much fun a pizza and documentary night would’ve been with him

there’s a reason why you let him join in on your supEr private air-guitar concerts in the kitchen that only namjoon has been able to experience

there’s a reason why you don’t mind all the teasing and the hair-pulling

there’s a reason

why you don’t get mad at him when he wakes you up in the morning by whacking you with a pillow before bouncing up and down on your bed like a maniac

why you don’t roll your eyes when he complains about there not being any yogurt left or when you eat the last piece of orange chicken or when you insist on watching another episode of ‘our earth’ before going to bed and he responds by calling you a nerd

there’s a reason why you feel like this unintentional hookup was actually intentional this whole damn time

there’s a reason why you agreed to stay with him instead of going to your room which is literally ten steps away

oh, god. i like taehyung.

taehyung wakes up the next morning in a cold, empty bed

he props himself up and rubs his hand over his face to wake himself up a little bit

his eyes flicker over your side of the bed

the pillow still has a dip in it from where your head was and-

yep of courSe you left a couple stands of hair behind lol

he turns to check the time on his phone and thaT’s when he notices the pink sticky note stuck to the pole of his bedside lamp

he squints a little because his eyes are still a little bleary with sleep

but once the note comes into his focus and he gets a chance to read it

his heart drops to his stomach

‘taehyung - i think that was a mistake.’

here’s the thing

you’re not just stressing out a little bit

you weren’t even this nervous when you were studying for finals!!!!!

you’re stressing out a LOTtle bit because now that you’ve had the entire day to think about it

you’re 110% sure that you have a crush on kim taehyung

and you have no fuNKing idea what the heck you’re supposed to do now

tell him that you like him??? what if he doesn’t like you back?? he’s still going to be your roommate even if he doesn’t like you back and things will never be the same again because you’re always going to have that elephant in the room you’ll be tip-toeing around and it’s just going to be a biG ol mess

but what if you don’t tell him that you like him?? then things will go back to normal except you guys will just never talk about the fact that his p was inside of your v and you’re probably going to have to deal with him bringing girls over again which is something that would honestly probably break your already weAK heart

but if you really think about it

at the end of the day, you’re always going home to taehyung

taehyung is your home.

“sometimes you just have to be willing to take a chance, you know?” namjoon shrugs as he flips a pen in between his fingers “otherwise you’re going to spend the rest of your life wondering to yourself, ‘what if i…?’”

you let out a little huff and lean down to press your face against the counter

sometimes you feel like namjoon was some kind of wise old owl in his past life

or maybe because he just reads a lot of philosophy books

he spends a lot of time in the library after all

“i don’t know, joonie… it’s not that easy, you know?” you sigh and shake your head “what happens if he doesn’t feel-“

namjoon literally shrieKs and ducks down when the library doors suddenly swing open violently

your eyes widen when you see taehyung storm in looking like he’s about to kill someone

he looks around frantically before locking gazes with you

oh

great!

it looks like the person he’s about to kill is you

“what the hell do you mean by ‘i think that was a mistake?’”

oh boy

you swallow thickly

“it either was a mistake or it wasn’T a mistake! you can’t think you made a mistake! you make a mistake, or you don’t make a mistake! there’s no in between, y/n!” he exasperates as he stomps over to you

you flash the people around the front counter a sheepish smile before looking at a veRy angry tae

you clear your throat

“hello to you too, roomie.”

“oh don’T give me that roomie bullshit right now, y/l/n.” he snaps and fixes the strap of his backpack “i think we need to talk.”

hA

nice reference

how clever of him

the cheeky boy

“i… don’t know if we have anything we need to talk about…” you shrug innocently before turning to lean back against the counter

oh

alright

if that’s how you’re going to do things then tae will happily play along

“oh? we don’t?” he raises a brow before poking his tongue into the inside of his cheek

“nope”

he scoffs and crosses his arms before looking you dead in the eye

“okay, fine. we don’t have to talk about the red scratch marks down my back left by your nails due to our mind-blowing sex last night because they’re kindA starting to sting and i was hoping we could go to the pharmacy and pick up some ointment for them… we also don’t have to talk about how you practically went cross-eyed when i did that thing with my tongue where-“

“okAY so it looks like we do have a couple things to talk about after all!!!!!” your voice cracks and namjoon gives you that look that you knOw is the ‘you have a lot of explaining to do’ face

it kind of makes him look constipated but that’s not the point

the most private place you could find in the shortest amount of time was behind the library

there’s a faint smell of garbage since this is where the dumpsters are but it seems like neither one of you care

“what is the matter with you??” you hiss and cross your arms

“what’s the matter with me?” tae scoffs “what’s the matter with yOU??”  

you resist the urge to roll your eyes

“look, i’m sure whatever you want to talk about can wait til we get back to the apartment-“

“where were you in the morning?” tae interrupts you and raises a brow

…

oof

see

the thing is

this morning when you woke up and realised that you still had feelings for taehyung and it wasn’t just a post-orgasm hormonal thing you kind of freaked out

so naturally you just… left

you just needed some time to think

anD you needed to hunt namjoon down because he always gives the best advice

you didn’t think it’d be such a big deal

in fact you’re not even sure why taehyung is fussing so much over it

unless….

“what- what are you talking about?”

“i don’t know how else to state the question. where were you this morning?”

“…i was… look, taehyung, i-“

“how do you think it makes me feel when you promised you would stay with me and i-i wake up completely alone and instead of seeing you the first thing i see is a stupid sticky note with-“ he raises his hands to do air quotes “-taehyung, i think that was a mistake?????”

“i can see why that would make you upset but i really think it’d be best if we just forgot about what we did and simply moved on-“

“oh my god, you are so stuBBo- you know what, i actually didn’t get the chance to finish going through the list of things that i hate about you, so i think now is the perfect chance to finish telling you aLL about it” tae laughs coldly and your brows knit together in confusion

“i don’t know if that’s very relevant right now-“

“you wanna know what the biggest thing i hate about you is?”

oh god

here we go

“what? my apparent inability to differentiate between making a mistake and-“

“i hate how much i like you.” tae interrupts you and your eyes widen at the sudden confession “i like everything about you, y/n. i like seeing how happy you get when you’re watching an episode of rilakkuma or when we’re having a nature documentary marathon. i like your stupid fruit-printed panties and i’m pretty sure my heart went into overdrive when i saw your dumb peach ones last night.” tae rolls his eyes playfully, “i like you, and i’m like 97% sure that you like me back, but you’re just too stubborn to admit it! i just- you are so fruStrating and usually i can tell if someone likes me back but it’s like i can’t even tell with you!!!!!” he scoffs and flaiLs his arms around before starting to pace around in front of you “jesus, y/l/n, i like you, and i wanna hold your hand, and i wanna kiss your stupid face after you wake up and before you go to bed, and i want you to wear my sweatshirts not because it was accidentally mixed into your laundry basket but just because you like wearing my clothes, and i wanna go grocery shopping with you and see how many tubs of ice cream we can get for free-“

you’re barely paying attention to what taehyung’s saying because:

taehyung likes you

and you like him

the realisation makes a soft smile appear on your face and you feel your heart skip a beat

taehyung likes you!!!!

and you like him!!!!

you guys like each other!!!!!

oh my god!!!!!

oH My gOD!!!!!!

“and you know what, even if you don’t like me back i don’t regret telling you about my feelings because i feel good knowing that it’s off my chest-“

“tae-“ you clear your throat and tae holds a hand out as if to tell you to shUT it

“-and at the end of the day we’re still going to be roommates which is finE with me like if you don’t like me in that way i guess i’ll have to get used to rejection but-“

“tae-“

“-i just wanna know!!!! i just wanna know what’s going on in that duMb ol head of yours because one minute you’re cuddled up to me and the next you’re acting like i’m crawling with germs oR one minute you’re calling me tae-tae and feeding me chicken because i’m too lazy to feed myself and the next minute you-“

“kim taehyung!!!!!!!”

“what?!” tae stops in his tracks and whiPs around to face you

he’s surprised to see that you’re looking at him with the softest smile on your face

there’s a little twinkle in your eye as you take a step towards him

“i think… this is the part where you’re supposed to kiss me.”

the frown fades from tae’s face

wait what

you

you want him to kiss you?

does this mean…

well now he feels a little silly

you should’ve saiD something before he went off on his angry rant about how much he haTes that he likes you

taehyung clears his throat “…sorry, what was that?”

you let out a sigh and roll your eyes before reaching out and grabbing onto the collar of tae’s t-shirt and pulling him towards you

your nervous happiness transitions to a giddy excitement as you press your lips against his

this kiss is definitely veRy different compared the one you shared last night

more sweet

more loving

your guys’ mouths meld together so perfectly it almost seems like you guys were made for each other and damNit you can taste that obnoxiously sweet strawberry gum on his lips

tae’s arm snakes around your waist and his palm presses against your jaw as he tilts your head up

you feel like you could float up to the sky like a balloon if it weren’t for his grip on you

his lips are insistent and he parts for a brief second before going back in for another kiss

he tilts his head a bit juSt so he can press a tiny bit harder and you giggle when his nose nudges against yours

it feels like sparkles are just blinking everYwhere around the two of you

tae smiles softly as he pulls away and up this close you’re able to see the golden flecks in his brown irises twinkling like little tiny stars

“does this mean i can drink straight out of the orange juice carton now?” tae hums and brushes a strand of your hair back gently

you purse your lips in thought

“…we’re going to have to talk about that one.”

so yeah

out of all the people in the world to get stuck with

kim taehyung really isn’t all that bad.

#insert obligatory i hope this does well tag #oof #i hope this does well #roommate!tae #taehyung #taehyung fic recs #kim taehyung #kim taehyung fic recs #reader insert #taehyung x reader #kim taehyung x reader #bts #bts fic recs #taehyung smut #taehyung smut recs #bts smut #bts smut recs #taehyung fluff #taehyung fluff recs #bts v #bts taehyung #namjoon #seokjin #hoseok #j-hope #jungkook #jungkook smut #taehyung fics #bts fics #taehyung writing

[xthelastknownsurvivorx]

Hamilton!firstprince au

(cross posted from twitter with a couple of edits b/c i couldn’t make them there)

in which i loosely follow the plot of hamilton except its firstprince and alex and henry get a happy ending. inspired by the striking similarities i noted between our favorite first son and his namesake hamilton in the broadway musical

the similarities:

both have/will have a political career

both often talk too much/don't mind their words

both began as lawyers

both extremely motivated but overwork themselves (“nonstop” +  “you have a fire under ur ass for no good goddamn reason)

both had some sort of sex scandal that impacted their career plans

hamilton speculated to be bi

the story

the setup of the colonized country alex lives in is similar to the usa vs england but fictional bc alexs race would have limited his opportunities in america's early years

idk names for either of these countries so its now the colony and the motherland

alex + his mom live alone in the poorer southern part of the colony

but his dad + june live elsewhere + they dont rly contact e/o (tho they do know of e/o’s existence)

june becomes a journalist who writes important pieces abt independence

when alex comes of age his mom reveals she used to be part of the rebellion

thats actually why his dad left to raise june bc it was too dangerous

his parents met in the rebellion but oscar left first for june while ellen stayed until she realized she was pregnant w alex

ellen still has some rebel contacts but she mostly sheltered alex to keep him safe

now tho alex decides to join too + the rebellion sends him up north to the capital for an education bc he's smart + they need people like that

he attends uni + meets like-minded people there

tension grows btwn the colony in the motherland, and alex + his friends write/speak out often and this goes on throughout their schooling

they’re also troublemakers in general too, much to the annoyance of the motherland soldiers stationed in the capital to prevent rebellion

henry is one of those soldiers

he's from a noble family in the motherland but was sent overseas as the sort of black sheep of the family due to his sexuality

the idea was to let him be in charge in the colony + reestablish a reputation there w/o embarrassing the main family back home

henry hates his job + feels bad for the colonists but still does what he's told anyway

alex + fhis riends like to bug motherland soldiers for fun

nothing  enough to put their lives in danger too much (although yes that too esp when drunk)

henry becomes a favorite target of alex's bc he's awfully stoic + statue like + on the way to uni - overall fun to antagonize 

there's also the fact that alex is angry at all the soldiers for oppressing the colony + holding up the motherland monarchs tyranny (but also alex just is the type to fight literally everything and anything) 

it becomes almost a daily ritual for them to argue 

henry wonders why this colonist keeps on picking a fight w him but soon almost looks forward to it

many of the other soldiers know or speculate why henry is in the colony but none make the effort to get to know him; some even call him arrogant or undeserving of his position

alex doesn't 

of course alex also doesn't know him

and alex hates him

but he doesn't whisper behind henry's back

henry comes to read some of the essays alex publishes speaking out against the monarchy + also hears alex speak to crowd in the square

alex is a talented + charismatic public speaker

henry finds himself growing increasingly sympathetic to the colonists cause

at the same time he and the other soldiers are order to be stricter and dole out more punishments

the others gleefully do so which makes henry concerned about alex's safety bc alex often seems to have no self-preservation skills

henry asks alex for a word when he's alone 

“am I in trouble?” “no but you bloody will be if u keep going on like this” 

“this is serious” “so am I” “you can't go around saying things so openly you'll get yourself killed”

alex tries to leave at this point “I think I'll be ok” but henry shoves him against the nearest wall 

“listen to me! stop acting like this is a game! ur putting ur sodding life in danger! I dont bloody care what ur opinions r but why must u declare them around enemy soldiers? how is this helpful 2 ur cause? u cant fight if ur dead” 

“you'd b surprised how effective martyrs are” 

cue enraged henry noises 

alexs gaze turns hard “listen i  appreciate/the advice” he says sarcastically “but I dont need an enemy telling me what to do. I can take care of myself” 

there's a stirring in alexs chest after he removes henry's hand and stalks off that he's pretty sure is anger

like it can't be anything else 

while alex is trying to convince himself of that, the tensions boil over + soon the two sides are on the brink of war then the fighting starts

henry + alex don't talk much for a while bc they're both busy on their sides preparing

school is on hold during the war so alex + his friends are looking to serve + bring glory to their names 

alex esp is recognized for his intelligence + becomes the recognized general rafael lunas secretary

luna is the george washington figure in this case who is impressed by alex wants him as his right-hand man

alex is disappointed his role is not on the battlefield bc he knows he has a good tactical mind + he could change the tide of a losing war + gain honor and status thru it, which would put him in a good position to be elected in the future

as secretary, alex is in charge of a lot of important correspondence eg for more supplies + men, so the motherland soldiers figure ambushing him off the battlefield would make things hard for the colonists

henry overhears this plan + immediately worries for alex's safety but he's cornered by another soldier to talk strategy + misses the chance to take out the men then

henry manages to catch that they're going to attack alex at night when he leaves + henry arrives just in time to kill them in a panic

alex hears the gunshot + yells “drop ur weapon”, drawing his own gun

henry obviously does + alex inspects the scene he keeps a gun fixed on henry

“what's going on?” he asks, eyeing henry w/ suspicion

henry explains everything + looks positively terrified bc he just betrayed his side even tho the motherland and his family has treated him like shit since he came out but still. 

becoming an outright traitor is not something henry ever planned + leaving behind everything he's ever known w no hope of ever going back is terrifying

but he also doesn't regret protecting alex

alex questions henry but can quickly tell henry is sincere + is telling the truth

henry explains his change of heart + they have a heartfelt moment in/just outside luna's office.

alex almost died + henry just switched sides, emotions are running high and they escalate into a kiss. the moon is out + it's all very romantic but they don't admit their feelings yet

soon after they go to luna, explain the situation + talk w the other generals/people in charge

henry is sent away on an assignment + is watched closely at first but he proves his loyalty quickly

henry and alex write letters back + forth that turn into love letters 

besides managing correspondence for luna, some of alexs ideas of sneak attacks/stealing supplies help turn the tide of the war andhe also writes to other countries for foreign aid

eventually the colonists win in this huge up start that no one anticipated bc the motherland is known as the most powerful country in the world

he + henry reunite in the capital of once the war is over

alex finishes up his studies + practices law + soon is chosen to be part of the new lawmaking body

things are going pretty well for alex w his legal + political success and his relationship with henry

they dont live together but theyre dating tho no one else knows

alex pretends to be single instead + says he doesn't want to be tied down

it works while he's still in his early 20s but as he gets closer to 30, people start to find it strange + tell him he needs to settle

being married to his work is also not a valid excuse anymore

it turns out alex made quite a few political enemies due to his strong opinions that he always vocalises + can be unwilling to compromise on

they don't like his ideas or more often hate him and hence his ideas too

they look for some dirt on him bc atm he has lunas support which has a lot of sway + decide they need to find out why he hasn't married

they manage to find out about henry + threaten to tell the public

alex is obviously distraught re the consequences personally + politically

so alex and henry discuss what to do 

henry is willing to put alexs political career 1st but firmly explains their relationship can't continue if that's the case

henry gave up his whole life + any possibility of going back to his family so he's not willing to be someone's dirty little secret  

alex doesn't know what to do so he goes to consult luna who he's become very close with over the years

luna is not quite old enough to be his father but he's like an uncle + he always calls alex “kid”, much to alex's annoyance

but alex knows he'll have some good advice

alex + luna end up having a long conversation

like washington luna has always been very vocal abt his regrets re his naivety + desire for glory back in his youth

hes always said that this was his greatest regret in life. but then he tells alex like he had another great regret in life- letting go of the love of his life

alex is surprised bc luna's never mentioned anyone special

“who is she?” 

“he” luna corrects “he was my best friend. we had something a relationship but it was short-lived bc I decided I wanted to join the military + attain glory. i thought thats what i wanted in life. turns out that stuff is meaningless w/o anyone to share it w. nor did I even achieve it. perhaps i did accomplish some things but now in my retirement I have no one by my side. i have found that life is meaningless without love and family.  

“i tried to find my friend to reconnect after all these years even as simply friends but he died in the war. alex, I see many similarities between us. don't make the same mistake that I did, alexander. glory + lasting legacy mean nothing if you're alone in the end

“if you make choices that are motivated by love and family you will be a lot happier”

alex takes his advice even though he kind of hates sort of giving up to his enemies

he decides to choose henry and his own happiness over politics bc in the end he's done a lot of good work and that much is enough

also his enemies probably would try to blackmail him throughout his career if he was doing something against their interests

so he + henry leave the capital and move uptown and the two of them have a quiet retirement + engage in philanthropy for the rest of their lives

separately they've amassed a decent amount of money - henry kept a portion of his inheritance despite being unofficially disowned and alex made a lot of money as a lawyer and then politician

as it turns out alex still has a tangential role in politics when some of his former allies go to him for advice

all in all, alex happy with his final decision to be with henry and step away from politics

the two of them live happy and full lives together

#red white and royal blue #rwrb #firstprince #henry fox mountchristen windsor #alex claremont diaz #alexander claremont diaz #rwrb fic

[burnedbyshoto]

if ur gonna make a server make it inclusive to every one. not just you top 10 ppl while every one else is like below u or some thing. supprtive family uplifting loving caring discord my ass tbf

hi anon :)

I hope you’ll eventually have an amazing day right now because it seems that you’re not! that’s fine it’s okay!

now about inclusivity of my server. for starters, i’ll be honest it’s not inclusive. it’s a 16+ server first and foremost, so yeah, we’re excluding anyone less than 16. not only that but most people do talk within the nsfw channels which are 18+ as per discord regulation. so if you’re not 18+ it is easy to feel out of place.

but since I do not know who you are, as you’ve chosen to hide behind anonymous disguise instead of being straight up with me of who you are, let’s discuss these special 10 people, no? and this hierarchy that’s in place that you feel there is.

in the server there are 342 members. 342. three hundred forty two. we have been a server since... god, when did we start november? yes, november. so in the total of three months 342 members have compiled within this server, of course not accounting all the kids who were younger than 16 that we kicked, and those who simply wanted to leave.

there is a team of 5 admin and mods overviewing this server of course, and I think we do an exceptional job at it. we’re all learning and relatively new at it, as a matter of fact ive never been an admin before in my life. I guess maybe you could guess that seeing you saw this heirarchy within the server. i’m a bit chaotic, a bit self-centered at times, and a bit scatter brained. i’ve never claimed to be perfect within a serious matter, nor have I ever been rude to anyone within the server. at least it’s never been brought to my attention.

now these “10 people”, let’s think about it. if you’re someone who talks to me on the daily, if you’re someone who responds back to the stupidest shit I say, and if you’re someone who interacts with the server don’t you think people will respond back to you too? some of these people have been active since november and I love them all so much!!! i’ve exchanged my snapchat with them because they’ve become family to me. now I don’t know about you but there’s no ten people who are above anyone else. the only ones who are above anyone else are me, sky, jo, pumpkin, and red.

now it’s not because we’re cooler, or better, or whatever the hell, it’s because we are the mods and we are the admin. we are the authority within the server and you must respect our rules.

now you also accuse everyone else as beneath us/me. mmmm wrong. I always attempt to greet people when they enter the server, the only time i fail to do so is when i’m not there. I always give a friendly welcoming and wait for them to respond. can I tell you how often they don’t respond??? how am I supposed to include you into a conversation when you don’t respond???

also remember how many people are in the server 342, and of these 342 there’s probably only 30 who are constantly active. which means every day they’ll hold convos that last more than 5 minutes. things do get buried unfortunately as conversations do move fast as we’re dumbasses. again, as an admin I do try my best to make sure everyone is heard, that everyone is responded to.

but unfortunately when I take a break, as remember i’m human, and I come back to 400+ messages in multiple different channels and there’s other admin and mods on, I in no way shape or form will read through all those convos unless i’m so bored that I’d count the number of hairs on my body.

but let’s return since i digressed: participating within a large server especially with a tight knit group such as ours is intimidating. I get it though! before growing accustomed to tumblr you’d never see me talking on the internet. it’s so daunting and just overall hard to speak your mind on the internet when you’re not strong willed online. but I feel with time i’ve pushed past it and am now doing fine. now it is your turn to push past it.

if you see a problem with the server, or if you feel like you’re being ignored or swept to the side and us admin and mods don’t see it, what should you do???? dm us.

we’re here to make your experience within the server not only a good time but a safe time. we can’t read your minds, nor can we tell that you’re upset. but if you come to us, things can happen. hell if you don’t think i’ll literally ignore whatever conversation is going on in general to respond to your ignored part in general and continue on as if they’re not talking about whatever the fuck, you’re wrong. the old members can adapt. everyone feels out of place in the server at times, it’s natural when there’s 342 voices going off within the server.

but instead of coming to me privately and informing me that people aren’t making you feel welcomed and included, you come to my askbox and not only demean my server but those within it as well for an issue that is easily solvable. so please, now it’s your choice to stay with my “supprtive family uplifting loving caring discord” or get the fuck out my ass.

#literally come on girl I love you but how am i supposed to know all these things

[autisticangus]

anyway im so out of the loop on the mcelboys

i pretty much only keep semi-up to date with Sawbones at this point, not cuz i dont still LIKE everything else, just a lot has been goin on in my life

if anyone wants a long and rambly update on All Of The Bullshit im gonna stick a read more down here, asks are open and its cool to message me abt any of it if u want cuz i have some really nice and cool followers/mutuals here that make me comfy talkin abt that shit

as far as the future of this blog goes i wanna start using it more again! the mcelroys have gotten me out of some really dark places before so i hope having more connection to this community and the people here and their content again will help me like it has in the past! ill probs post more general mcelroy content here than previously rather than just taz btw i just gotta fuckin uhhhhh,,,, catch up on a bunch of shit again before this blog is even semi active lmaoo but im like alive and on tumblr regularly again!!

Wow u clicked on this and wanna hear me talk? Ur awesome and sweet, thanks for caring!

These past two years have been extraordinarily tough. This is gonna be a pretty long and detailed post that deals with the sensitive topics of emotional abuse, abusive relationships, and alcoholism. Please read on with caution.

Back in March of 2019, so this was about 3-4 months after i left tumblr, I got a new boyfriend and things started out really good, he was kind of a "bad boy" and it was fun at first. Im kind of a goody-goody so it was very interesting for me at first to be with someone so different who had such different life experiences than me. I liked hearing his stories of living in a traphouse, and running with gangs, and selling drugs, and knowing people who had killed people. I assumed a LOT of it was lies, obviously, who just brags about that shit u know? I just rolled with it, didnt take it seriously, and found the imagined scenarios interesting to listen to. So much of it was obviously played up to make him seem cooler, and I shouldve seen that as the red flag it was, and all my friends did but I didnt. 

He had a serious alcohol problem, I mean I had coffee in the morning and he had 2 four lokos before noon. it was bad. about 6 months into the relationship he decided i was cheating on him with my ex who i had recently reconnected with, we missed being friends and things were really going well talking and being friends again, he was really important to me! but my boyfriend saw this as yet another thing i was doing wrong. when he decided i was cheating, that become his focus of alcoholic rage. nearly every time he got drunk, which was several times a week, he would accuse me of things, he would yell and scream, he would call me horrible names and make me cry for literal hours, he never hit me but that shouldnt even matter, i was emotionally battered and mentally bruised and everything hurt. he gaslit me into believing i said and did things i never said or did, i admitted to things that were not real, and then i was yelled at for admitting them. i didnt know what to do.

he was threatening my ex too, he would get drunk and say he knew where he lived (he didnt) or he knew what car he drove (he didnt) and explained to me many times that although he had never killed someone, people had been killed before at his command. he said a bullet in the back of my ex’s brain was just a phone call and $500 away. somedays he would tell me he was just going to do it himself, with a hammer, or a kitchen knife, or whatever weapon he could get his hands on during his explanation of how he would do it. my only option was to agree, to say it didnt matter to me what happened to him, i had to pretend my on

/ly concern was him going to jail for the crime, if i showed any sign that i didn’t want my ex murdered, it clearly meant i was cheating on him. 

i pretended to block my ex on social media to get him off my back and it worked a little bit but he still brought it up. and even if he didnt directly mention him, he would always tell me when he was drunk that i was the cause of all his problems, i was why he was so self conscious, i was why he drank so much, i was why he had to work so hard, i was why every single issue he had was happening. logically i knew it was wrong, but i was so conditioned to it by then that i just went with it. i knew that agreeing and apologizing made the fighting end quicker.

things spiraled this past summer. his job needed us to relocate so we moved like 4 states away, away from all my family and friends, and lived in a tiny hotel room for a month. during this time, his drinking was somehow worse. he was drunk literally every night but he was passing out so we didnt fight and i was relieved. i was depressed being stuck in the hotel room all day alone, but thankful i wasnt being abused at least. then he started getting into drunken fistfights with his coworkers in the hotel parking lot. one day he came home just in time to find one of his drunk coworkers trying to break into the room with me there desperately trying to keep him out. i was terrified and wanted to go home but he convinced me to stay. a couple weeks after that we travelled for his work again several more states away. his drinking got a little bit better here, but i was so depressed and lonely, i was so isolated, he was all i saw day in and day out besides his coworkers and i was nervous around them. one day the guy who tried to break in on me, purposefully, while drunk, hit another coworkers car and totaled it and tried to run the guy over and i saw the whole thing. a week later my boyfriend was also fired because he got so drunk he passed out in the hotel parking lot and the company needed to save face with the hotel after the whole car incident. 

so we travelled back home, but not my home, to his where we lived isolated on a mountain with no phone signal or wifi. the house was old and not well kept from being empty for several years, half the appliances didnt work. i was more isolated than i have ever been in my life. for 4 months i stayed there and just dreaded him coming home because i knew he would be drunk again and he'd yell or accuse me of things or otherwise belittle me. it was horrible. my friends all said to leave and my parents said to leave but i was so brainwashed into thinking that if i was just a good little housewife and if i just stayed home and did the dishes and the laundry that he would be nicer but he still found things to point at and say i was cheating. he was also becoming really controlling about my food intake and weight and i already struggle with an eating disorder so that just made me feel even more like i had to stay, my brain felt like if i wasnt under his watchful eye id gain weight again, like somehow it was thanks to him i had lost weight and not my own choices.

one day last week i expressed to him wanting to leave, saying how unhappy i was, i told him how sad i felt and how i didnt think we were such a good match. he didnt take me seriously, so the next day when he got sloppy drunk before 5 pm i packed a small bag and went to my moms. i was just gonna stay for a night or two but he called and screamed at me for leaving without telling him, i told him he just didnt remember me telling him because he was so drunk, and he accused me of not caring about his feelings and made me sound like the bad guy for leaving without his permission. i told him it was just for a few days but the angrier he got the more i knew i was in the right and told him i was done. i told him we were breaking up and id come get my stuff soon.

i got my stuff while he was at work this past weekend and moved in with my best friend. im safe and happy now. things are looking so much better for me and im so thankful to my friends and family who supported me all the way to the end.

i just wanted to make this post because, i know its not mcelroy related, and a lot of ppl probably dont care for stuff like this on this kind of blog, but i think its important.

its important to friends and family of people in abusive relationships to be steady. dont give up your ground. even if the person keeps pushing back and wont leave the person, keep being there for them, it can take a long time, it took me almost 2 years to leave, it takes some people even longer, but just stay there for them and be there for them when they finally make that step. dont give up on them.

and to those who have been in these kinds of relationships, and especially those who are there right now: it is not your fault. it is so, so hard to leave, i know, but please try to find help and support and resources to do it. if all your friends dont like someone, theres a good reason for it. please dont fall into the trap of thinking your friends dont have the best intentions for you. there are so many things you may overlook in the moment that others can see from a mile away are horrible. especially if you have been abused in the past. its incredibly hard to tell what is a red flag when your gut instinct is that anything and everything is a red flag. surround yourself with people who you can trust and listen to them

and trust me, i know how hard it is when youre stuck in that spot of KNOWING you should go but fearing that first step away. its scary. its difficult. but it is worth it. find someone safe you can be with. and if you arent sure, find a reason to leave for just a few days, an excuse, anything. give yourself space from the abuser, tell yourself youre going back in a couple days, just get out from under the thumb long enough to clear your head and things will make more sense with the fog lifted.

when i first got in my car and put my kitten on my lap and told her we were going to my moms for a couple nights, i didnt know if that was the truth. i planned to come back and i knew i didnt want to. i only took enough stuff for a couple days. i couldnt imagine my life changing so drastically. where would i live? how would i make money? who take care of me? i had no clue about any of those things. but after a couple days away I realized i would take care of me. i remembered that i had worked jobs before i was with him, i could do it again. i remembered that i had options of where to live. all of those things were so clouded when i was with him, they felt like impossibilities. once i was away, even just for a short time, things were so much easier to parse.

and i know i had many privileges in this journey not everyone is afforded, and my heart goes out to those who read this and are in this situation and the options i had just arent accessible to you, i am so sorry, i wish i had something more to offer you but all i have is my story, and a wish that it gives you some hope at the very least, and a promise that if you need someone to talk to, im here, i will listen, and you will be heard and loved.

i just want everyone who reads to take something small but important away from it. love your friends, love yourself. please stay safe. please dont give up. remember love should not hurt.

#angus.txt #getting deep in here but it felt good to write #i love u all so much ok pls be good urselves